Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Food: Waste

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department's net-zero policies of not introducing new legislation on food waste.

Rebecca Pow: Through powers in the Environment Act 2021, we will introduce separate food waste collections from all households and businesses. This policy is key in our Net Zero ambitions through helping us achieve the near elimination of biodegradable municipal waste to landfill from 2028. We are working to publish the government response to our 2021 consultation on Consistency in recycling as soon as possible. Alongside regulations we will publish a final impact assessment which will outline the net-zero benefits of the policy. In terms of food waste prevention, the Net Zero Strategy re-iterates the government’s commitment to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 target, to halve global food waste per capita by 2030.

Food: Retail Trade

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to encourage unsold food in the retail space to be redirected to (a) food banks and (b) food security organisations.

Rebecca Pow: This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only. The safe and speedy redistribution of surplus food is a Government priority. The Food and Drink Waste Hierarchy includes the expectation that all businesses prioritise surplus redistribution before disposal. Government works closely with businesses through our delivery partner the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) to overcome any barriers to this requirement. This includes the development of guidance and best practice through a sector wide working group, and support for the Target Measure Act (TMA) approach to understanding and acting on food waste in supply chains, including the redistribution of any surplus should it arise. Since 2018, Defra funding of nearly £13m has supported both large and small redistribution organisations across the country to make sure more surplus food gets to charities.

Inland Waterways

Sir Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the level of funding it provides for the Canal and River Trust; what steps her Department is taking to protect canals; and if she will make a statement.

Rebecca Pow: The Government’s review of the current grant funding for the Canal and River Trust (C&RT) examined the performance of the C&RT since its establishment in 2012 to assess value for money, and considered the case for continued Government grant funding beyond the end of the current grant period in 2027. The comprehensive and independent evidence-based assessment undertaken during the review drew on Government best practice using cross-government and external expertise, as set out in HM Treasury’s 5-case business case model and the Green Book. Full consideration was given to the evidence provided by the C&RT when assessing the range of benefits it provides. The report on the review of the grant agreement between the Government and the C&RT was published on the gov.uk website on 11 July, available here. The current 15-year Government grant that ends in 2027 amounts to around £740 million, and the new 10-year grant from 2027 to 2037 announced on 10 July amounts to a further £401 million. This supports the C&RT in maintaining a safe canal network. Specific activities undertaken to achieve that are an operational matter for the C&RT.

Canal and River Trust: Finance

Sir Gavin Williamson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to help ensure the financial self-sufficiency of the Canal and River Trust.

Rebecca Pow: The Memorandum of Understanding between Defra and the C&RT signed on 28 June 2012 has a clear objective: “To reduce dependence on Government Grant and to foster increasing self-sufficiency, by providing access to new charitable income streams and stimulating new efficiencies”. Defra officials have been discussing this with the C&RT for some time and have offered support on how it can increase income from other sources, alongside continued Government funding. The C&RT’s total income has grown by 11% between 2013/14 and 2022/23, while the proportion of that from the Government grant has remained relatively stable over this period at around 24% The Government currently provides the Canal and River Trust (C&RT) with a grant worth £740 million over the 15 years 2012-2027 that provides roughly a quarter of its income. When the C&RT was set up in 2012, the Government also provided it with a permanent endowment fund now worth over £1 billion that generates a further quarter of its income. On 10 July the Government announced a very substantial £401 million of new grant funding for the C&RT between 2027 and 2037. This is a significant sum of money and a sign of the importance that we place on our inland waterways. It will also support the C&RT in continuing to move towards achieving the original objective of greater self-sufficiency.

Public Footpaths: Repairs and Maintenance

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions her officials have had with the Canal and River Trust on the maintenance of footpaths.

Rebecca Pow: Defra officials meet with the Canal and River Trust (C&RT) management formally three times a year to discuss a range of issues, particularly relating to the Government grant. Towpath condition forms a part of the Relevant Standards that the C&RT must achieve annually to access the conditional element of the Government grant. These Relevant Standards are published on the C&RT’s website. However, the specific arrangements on maintenance of towpaths are an operational matter for the C&RT.

Angling: Licensing

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information her Department holds on the number of rod licences issued by the Environment Agency in 2022.

Mark Spencer: In addition to the information provided to PQ196068 the Environment Agency records the type of rod licence sold (e.g. salmon / coarse and trout / senior / junior / disabled / annual / 8 day or 1 day). Additional information is recorded for the individuals who purchase a rod licence as follows: Name, Address and Date of Birth (Mandatory); E-mail and Telephone number (Optional); Proof of eligibility for disabled concession (mandatory for those claiming concession).

Angling: Licensing

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many rod licences were issued by the Environment Agency in each (a) region and (b) county in 2022.

Mark Spencer: The Environment Agency holds information on the sale of rod licences for the following geographical areas. The numbers of rod licences issues in 2022 are provided below. Cumbria and Lancashire32,081Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, and Leicestershire50,657Devon and Cornwall17,011East Anglia94,956Greater Manchester Merseyside and Cheshire58,513Hertfordshire and North London52,320Kent and South London64,009Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire39,702Northumberland Durham and Tees25,669Solent and South downs37,149Wessex39,771West Midlands101,326West Thames45,452Yorkshire74,158TOTAL732,774

Animal Welfare: Labelling

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Summary of Responses to the Call for Evidence on Labelling for Animal Welfare, published by her Department in August 2022, when she plans to consult on proposals to improve and expand mandatory labelling requirements for animal welfare.

Mark Spencer: In 2021, Defra ran a call for evidence to gather data on the potential impacts of different types of labelling reform for animal welfare. We received over 1,600 responses and a summary of these responses is available on GOV.UK. The evidence provided suggested that there is public appetite for improved welfare labelling, however we do not consider the time is right to consult on proposals to reform labelling for animal welfare. We will continue to work with stakeholders to explore how we can harness the market to improve food information for consumers and raise animal welfare standards.

Ofwat: Complaints

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs,  how many complaints the Office for Water Regulation received for issues relating to the laying of pipes across private land in 2022.

Rebecca Pow: Ofwat, as the economic regulator for the water industry, received 14 distinct complaints in 2022 regarding water company work on private land.

Flood Control: Private Property

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help ensure that flood defences on private land are well maintained.

Rebecca Pow: I refer the Hon member to the reply given on 13 June 2023 to PQ 187399.

Ofwat: Staff

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of (a) board members and (b) employees of Ofwat have previous experience in the sector that they regulate.

Rebecca Pow: Ofwat board members bring a range of relevant skills and experience, however no current board members have direct experience of working in a regulated water company. For employees of Ofwat, we do not hold this information. Ofwat recruits people on the basis of their skills and experience which can help us to hold companies to account. Once employed by Ofwat, they are subject to civil service rules on independence, propriety and probity as part of the Ofwat Code of Conduct applicable to all employees.

Microplastics

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of (a) monitoring and (b) mitigating the presence of microplastics within the UK.

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she plans to introduce new regulations to (a) monitor and (b) mitigate the presence of microplastics in the UK.

Rebecca Pow: No assessment has been made. We are commissioning a research project called the ‘Emissions of intentionally added microplastics’ which will investigate the risks of intentionally added microplastics. It will advise on the most effective measures to address risks and help identify wider evidence gaps that need to be addressed to support a more strategic approach to managing intentionally added microplastics. The Government has, however, taken a targeted approach to tackling microplastic pollution. We’ve already banned microbeads in rinse-off personal care products and we continue to tackle upstream sources of secondary microplastics that leak into the environment, by banning and restricting commonly littered plastic items – including single use plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds and through our upcoming bans on single use plastic plates, cutlery, balloon sticks and expanded and extruded polystyrene food and drinks containers. We recently announced in the Plan for Water that we will change the law to ban the sale of wet wipes containing plastic subject to public consultation, which will be launched in Autumn 2023. The UK Government is also proud to have supported the proposal by Rwanda and Peru that led to the ambitious resolution to start negotiating an international legally binding treaty to end plastic pollution, agreed at the United Nations Environment Assembly in March 2022. The process to negotiate a new agreement is now underway, and the UK has taken an ambitious stance, including calling for specific provisions in the agreement to address microplastic pollution.

Recycling

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when her Department plans to publish a response to the consultation entitled Consistency in Household and Business Recycling in England, published in July 2021.

Rebecca Pow: We are working to publish the government response to the 2021 consultation as soon as possible. This will confirm implementation dates and provide further detail on regulations and funding to be made in advance of the implementation dates.

Water Abstraction: Licensing

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that abstraction licence holders are given adequate time to adapt when their licences are (a) modified and (b) revoked.

Rebecca Pow: The Environment Agency makes changes to abstraction licences to achieve environmentally sustainable levels of abstraction to meet its legal duties and the Government’s environmental ambitions. If a change to an abstraction licence is required to make it environmentally sustainable, the Environment Agency recognises that abstractors need time to adapt to this change. Accordingly, the Environment Agency writes to abstractors to warn them that their licences may need to change in the future with further detail to follow once it has completed its review of the licences. Additionally, the Environment Agency has said it will give abstractors time to adapt to any licence changes on a case-by-case basis depending on the environmental risks.

Local Resilience Forums

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential implications for its polices of the Risk Assessment and Risk Planning Committee recommendation to place Local Resilience Forums on a statutory footing.

Rebecca Pow: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 31 March 2023 to the hon. Member for Newport West, PQ 170740.

Climate Change: Weather

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential financial risk to local authorities from climate change-related weather and temperature incidents.

Trudy Harrison: The Government’s Third Climate Change Risk Assessment, published in January 2022, includes an assessment of the potential cost of a wide range of climate risks to the UK. Councils are best placed to make decisions about local priorities and to support local resilience to climate change we are piloting a dedicated Local Authority Climate Service. This will provide easy access to localised climate data, while generating reports and infographics for easy use. This Met Office tool will help local authorities plan adaptation by informing them about hazards such as rainfall and extreme heat.

Air Quality Grant Scheme

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to increase the air quality grant for local authorities in the next budget.

Trudy Harrison: This year’s Local Air Quality Grant is open for new applications for the 2023/24 year, with a pot of £6 million to help local authorities improve air quality in their areas. Funding for future years will remain under review.

Air Pollution: Pollution Control

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to publish the revised National Air Quality Strategy.

Trudy Harrison: The revised National Air Quality Strategy was published on 28 April 2023 and can be found here.

Companies: Air Pollution

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which organisations completed air quality modelling to inform the air quality targets set out in the Environmental Improvement Plan.

Trudy Harrison: The Environmental Improvement Plan was informed by a range of air quality modelling undertaken by key Defra contractors, as well as in-house assessment undertaken for the purpose of policy development. More information on the target development process is available here: Development of the Environment Act Targets - Defra, UK

Climate Change: Local Government

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to ring fence funding for local authorities to manage climate-related incidents.

Trudy Harrison: Councils are best placed to make decisions about local priorities. To enable this the Government made available £59.7 billion for local government in England in the Local Government Finance Settlement 2023/24. This is an increase in Core Spending Power of up to £5.1 billion or 9.4% in cash terms on 2022/23. In addition to overall local government funding there are other support mechanisms for climate resilience that the Government offers. These include devolution deals, forthcoming strengthening of Local Resilience Forums’ powers, and the Community Resilience Development Framework.

Seeds

Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which seeds that are permitted under Article 49(1) of Regulation (EC) 1107/2009 have not been provided authorisation for use from 1 January 2024.

Mark Spencer: Prior to EU Exit, the legislation quoted allowed seeds treated with a plant protection product (PPP) authorised in at least one Member State to be imported, marketed and used in GB. After Exit, arrangements were put in place to allow the import and use of treated seeds to continue until the end of 2023, following which all seed treatments would need GB authorisation. I have listened to farmers and recognise the importance of access to treated seeds from the EU, particularly in the feed and horticulture sectors. I am preparing to lay secondary legislation in the autumn, through the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 (REUL), to ensure measures are in place, before the current scheme for importing treated seeds ends in December. The aim of this legislation will be to extend transitional arrangements for the import of treated seeds from the EU and EEA and will also include provisions to address the important issue of parallel imports.

Poultry: Animal Housing

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with relevant stakeholders on the phasing out of cages for laying hens.

Mark Spencer: Ministers meet with relevant stakeholders frequently to discuss a range of issues. We are firmly committed to maintaining our strong track record on animal welfare and to delivering continued improvements, both in the course of this Parliament and beyond. We do not consider the time is right to consult on cage reforms, being mindful of the challenges the sectors are facing. The market is already driving the move away from using cages for laying hen production. The proportion of eggs that come from caged hens has steadily decreased from 47% of total throughput in Q4 2017, to 21% in Q1 2023. We continue to work with the sector to maintain and enhance our high standards. The Government’s animal welfare priorities for its Animal Health and Welfare Pathway include supporting producers to transition away from confinement systems.

Silk Stream Flood Resilience Innovation Project

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department has taken to communicate the risk of flooding to flood-prone homes along the Silk Stream in Colindale.

Rebecca Pow: The Environment Agency is supporting a project led by Barnet and Harrow councils called Action for Silk Stream which has actively been engaging with local communities over the last year. The project aims to reduce the risk of flooding in multiple areas across the catchment and is one of 25 projects across England within our £150 million Flood and Coastal Resilience Innovation Programme. Engagement activities have included in person awareness raising events at various local parks through which the Silk Stream flows. The project has also established a website to keep communities updated on progress.

Canal and River Trust: Finance

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the written statement entitled Future funding for the Canal and River Trust of 10 July 2023, HCWS924, for what reason she plans to reduce funding for the Canal and River Trust relative to the funding announced in 2012.

Rebecca Pow: When the Canal and River Trust (C&RT) was set up in 2012 to replace British Waterways, the Government agreed to provide an annual grant totalling around £740 million over a 15-year period up to 2027 as the charity established itself. At the time the Government and the C&RT agreed in a Memorandum of Understanding on 28 June 2012 that the C&RT would progressively reduce reliance on Government grant funding. The Government recently agreed to provide the C&RT with a further £400 million grant over ten years from 2027, while encouraging the C&RT to increase income from alternative sources and reduce reliance on taxpayer funding as an independent charity, consistent with the original strategic intent. There have been incorrect claims made that this new grant represents a £300 million cut to the C&RT’s funding. The Government has been discussing with the C&RT for some time how the C&RT can increase income from other sources and has been offering support on this.

Water Supply: Infrastructure

Alex Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department plans to take to support investment in water capture and storage infrastructure on farms after 2025.

Rebecca Pow: The Government’s support for water capture via the Water Management Grant will continue to deliver investment in this vitally important policy area into and through 2025. We continue to evaluate delivery of the current scheme and will use this to help shape future grants offer.

Department for Education

Schools: Buildings

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many school buildings constructed by (a) Caledonian Modular and (b) other contractors engaged under the Modern Methods of Construction framework have been investigated by her Department for possible safety defects; and if she will publish the findings of those investigations.

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many (a) state-funded school and (b) college buildings were Caledonian Modular contracted to build by her Department since 2010; and whether she has an estimate on the number that were (i) completed and (ii) partially constructed.

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has taken steps to recover money from (a) the administrators of Caledonian Modular and (b) other organisations in relation to (i) schools that were never completed and (ii) schools constructed by Caledonian Modular that have since closed due to possible safety defects.

Nick Gibb: Caledonian Modular Limited (CML) was directly contracted to deliver five schools by the Department for Education. The Department did not contract CML to build any further education college buildings. Three schools were completed and two were partially constructed and are being rebuilt. All five of these schools delivered by CML have been investigated. No other schools using Modern Methods of Construction have been similarly investigated, and there are currently no plans to publish the findings. Appropriate steps are being taken to enforce the Department’s contractual rights in relation to all affected CML schools, including those schools which have closed due to possible safety defects and those which never reached completion. The Department is pursuing all avenues for redress against the parties responsible for those issues.

Students: Fees and Charges

Matt Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she plans to retain the current level of tuition fees for home fee status students.

Robert Halfon: Maximum tuition fees, and the subsidised loans available from government to pay them, remain at £9,250 for the current, 2023/24, academic year in respect of standard full-time courses. The department is also freezing maximum tuition fees for 2024/25 to deliver better value for students and to keep the cost of higher education under control. By 2024/25, maximum fees will have been frozen for seven years. The department believes a continued fee freeze achieves the best balance between ensuring that the system remains financially sustainable, offering good value for the taxpayer, and reducing debt levels for students in real terms. Higher education (HE) providers are autonomous and responsible for setting their own fees under this level. In deciding to keep charging full fees, providers will want to ensure that they can continue to deliver courses which are fit for purpose and help students progress their qualifications. As part of wider HE reforms, the department is investing around £750 million of additional funding over the three year period from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to support high quality teaching and facilities including in science and engineering, subjects that support the NHS, and degree apprenticeships. This includes the largest increase in government funding for the HE Sector to support students and teaching in over a decade.

Literacy: Special Educational Needs

Anthony Mangnall: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many primary schools in England use literacy resources at Key stage 1 designed specifically for (a) deaf children and (b) other visual learners that include visual languages to support access and inclusion in early literacy as of July 2023.

David Johnston: ​​The department recognises the importance of supporting all children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), including deaf children and those with a hearing impairment. On the Get Information About Schools service, there are 197 primary schools and five all-through schools listed as providing for children with hearing impairments. This information is available at: https://get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/. The government does not collect local authority level data on specialist education services for children with sensory impairments. The Children and Families Act 2014 requires all local authorities to publish a local offer of services for children and young people with SEND in their area, to ensure that families are aware of services that are available in their area and are able to contribute to shaping the services to meet local needs. Information about the support available for children with sensory impairment should be included within that local offer. In the SEND and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan, published in March 2023, the department set out a mission for more children and young people to have their needs met effectively in mainstream settings, reducing reliance on Education, Health and Care plans to access support. The department will improve mainstream education through setting standards for early and accurate identification of need, and timely access to support to meet those needs. The standards will include clarifying the types of support that should be ordinarily available in mainstream settings, who is responsible for securing the support and from what budgets. On 11 July 2023, the department published an updated version of our Reading Framework, available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1168960/The_Reading_Framework_July_2023.pdf. This provides best practice guidance for improving early reading teaching, including for pupils with SEND.

Free School Meals: Academic Year

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he Department is taking steps to support families on low incomes through provision of nutritious meals for children over school holidays.

David Johnston: The department is aware school holidays can be particular pressure points for some families because of increased costs, such as food and childcare, and reduced incomes.This year, the government in England is again investing over £200 million in the Holiday Activities and Food programme, with all local authorities delivering in the Easter, summer and Christmas holidays. The programme provides heathy meals, enriching activities, and free childcare places to children from low-income families, benefiting their health, wellbeing and learning. Last summer, the programme reached around 600,000 children across England, including over 475,000 children eligible for free school meals across England.

Vocational Education

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve careers advice on options for vocational learning.

Nick Gibb: The Department has put in place measures to help young people make informed choices about their next step in education or training. All secondary school pupils have opportunities to access information and advice on technical options, including apprenticeships, T Levels and higher technical qualifications. Schools are required by law to provide at least six opportunities for providers of technical education and apprenticeships to speak to all pupils during school years 8 to 13. This legislation came into force on 1 January 2023 and the Department published updated statutory guidance on careers and provider access, which set out what schools need to do to comply. Through the apprenticeship, support and knowledge (ASK) programme, which is supported by £3.2 million of funding in the 2023/24 financial year, the Department is continuing to provide information, advice and guidance on apprenticeships, T Levels and other technical education routes. ASK has engaged with over 600,000 young people, over 2,200 schools and nearly 80 further education colleges in the 2022/23 academic year. The Government’s ‘Get the Jump: Skills for Life’ online campaign brings together the different education and training pathways open to young people post 16 and post 18. It helps to raise awareness of technical education options, supports informed choice and signposts users to a new page on the National Careers Service website that brings all the options together for the first time.

Stonewall

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what meetings her Department has held with representatives from Stonewall since 2020.

Nick Gibb: The Department does not hold this information centrally. Officials and ministers from the Department have met with a broad range of stakeholders during this time. Details of meetings between ministers/senior officials and external organisations at the Department are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dfe-ministers-quarterly-returns and: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dfe-business-expenses-and-hospitality-for-senior-officials.

Children in Care

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's annual report and accounts for 2022/23, published in July 2023, what steps she is taking to mitigate the risk 4 on looked-after children placement market failure.

David Johnston: Local authorities have a duty to ensure there are enough places for their children in care. This year, councils have up to £59.7 billion available for their services, including children’s social care. This is a 9.4% increase in cash terms compared to 2022/23. As detailed in the department’s consolidated annual report, the department understands the current challenges in the looked after children placement market. The department is carrying out a number of actions to help mitigate the risks. As set out in our strategy, Stable Homes, Built on Love, which was published on 2 February 2023, the department is providing £259 million of capital funding over the next parliament to help local government develop more of their own children’s homes. The department is also investing over £27 million over the next two years to deliver a fostering recruitment and retention programme to boost local authority fostering capacity. Additionally, the department is also working with Ofsted and the sector to develop plans for a provider financial oversight regime to increase transparency and prevent sudden market exit.

GCE A-level

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what percentage of pupils taking A-Levels received the grades A* to E and U in each subject by each region of England in each academic year since 2019.

Nick Gibb: The data in the attached table provided covers A levels entered by pupils aged 16 to 18 in state funded schools and colleges in England for each academic year since 2018/19. Figures are broken down by each Government Office Region and by subject. The proportion achieving grades A* to E and U within each is shown. The number of A level awards and grades, and the proportion awarded at grade A* to E is published in the ‘A level and other 16 to 18 results’ statistical release. The proportion awarded grade U in each subject was calculated by dividing those numbers by the total number of A level entries in that subject. Due to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, the summer examination series was cancelled in both 2020 and 2021. Alternative processes were set up to award grades. A level examinations returned in 2022 and adaptations were made, such as providing advance information. The approach to grading for 2022 examinations broadly reflected a midpoint between results in 2019 and 2021.A Levels entered by students aged 16 to 18 (xlsx, 95.5KB)

Department for Education: Public Expenditure

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 21 June 2022 to Question 17077 on Department for Education: Public Expenditure, if she will publish the (a) highest 10 areas of cross-departmental programme expenditure to which her Department plans to contribute over the spending review period 2022-23 to 2024-25 and (b) amount of programme expenditure allocated to each area over that period.

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 21 June 2022 to Question 17076, if she will publish the (a) highest 10 areas of programme expenditure under the exclusive control of her Department during the spending review period 2022-23 to 2024-25 and (b) amount of programme expenditure allocated to each area during that period.

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding was (a) planned and (b) spent in each of the ten highest areas programme expenditure under the exclusive control of her Department in each month of each financial year of this spending review period.

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding was (a) planned and (b) spent in each of the ten highest areas of cross-departmental programme expenditure in each month of each financial year of this spending review period.

Nick Gibb: The Department’s programme budget, as restated in the Spring Budget 2023, is £76.5 billion in 2022/23, £81.1 billion in 2023/24 and £84.4 billion in 2024/25.The Department’s annual report and accounts 2022/23 provides detail of programme expenditure in 2022/23 and is accessible at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/department-for-education-consolidated-annual-report-and-accounts-2022-to-2023.The Department’s Main Estimate sets out the budget for the financial year and is accessible at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/main-supply-estimates-2023-to-24.The ten highest areas of planned programme expenditure in 2023/24 included in the Estimate are displayed in the below table:Area of programme expenditure£ billionSchools block of the dedicated schools grant44.35High needs block of the dedicated schools grant9.9516-19 education and T-Levels6.83Early years block of the dedicated schools grant3.89Pupil premium2.87Apprenticeships2.59Strategic Priorities Grant1.46Adult education budget1.46Education recovery programmes1.01Private Finance Initiative revenue grant0.75 These numbers will be revised as required at the Supplementary Estimate for the funding to be provided to schools in 2023/24 following the announcement of the teachers’ pay award, and to drive forward skills delivery in the further education sector. Departmental expenditure is subject to an annual planning exercise. For this reason, the Department are unable to confirm figures for 2024/25. Government departments routinely transfer funding where there are shared priority programmes. Across the spending review period, the Department will jointly deliver programmes with other government departments such as the Multiply programme to improve adult numeracy and to create a network of family hubs to improve access to start for life services. Further information on cross-Government funding can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/hm-treasury.The Department does not hold month by month budget or expenditure information in the format requested. The Department does publish a payment schedule for the dedicated schools grant, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dedicated-schools-grant-dsg-2023-to-2024/dsg-conditions-of-grant-2023-to-2024.

Special Educational Needs: Inspections

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to deliver updated Ofsted and CQC Area SEND inspections.

David Johnston: The department has worked closely with Ofsted and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to develop and launch the new Area Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) inspection framework. Inspection activity commenced in January 2023 and will continue on a continuous cycle in line with the published framework and handbook.These inspections will place greater emphasis on the outcomes that are being achieved for children and young people and look more closely at children under five and those aged 16-25 years old. They will also involve social care inspectors and include alternative provision for the first time.This inspection framework will allow the department to act quickly when areas fail to provide the necessary support to meet the needs of children and young people.Since the launch of the current Ofsted/CQC area SEND inspection framework in January 2023, 16 inspections have concluded and eight reports have been published. All local areas are due to receive a full inspection within five years, driving better outcomes and standards in line with our ambitious programme of reform.

Special Educational Needs

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's annual report and accounts for 2022/23, published in July 2023, what steps she is taking to mitigate the risk 5 on financial instability resulting from high needs cost pressures.

David Johnston: In March, the department published the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) Improvement Plan, which set out plans for a national SEND and AP system that fulfils children’s potential, builds parents’ trust and provides financial sustainability. Underpinning this, the government has made substantial investment to secure the sustainability of the high needs system, with the high needs budget rising to £10.54 billion in 2024/25, an increase of over 60% since 2019/20.The plan sets out further detail on actions being taken to support and stabilise the system, including the Safety Valve and Delivering Better Value programmes which are currently working with a total of 90 local authorities to help them to manage their high needs systems effectively and sustainably. Furthermore, the department has published guidance and research drawing on the work of local authorities who are managing the budgets more effectively, and we encourage all authorities to use these in creating their own management plans.

Further Education and Schools: Strikes

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to mitigate the risk of industrial action in (a) schools and (b) colleges.

Nick Gibb: Members of the National Education Union, the National Association of Schoolmasters and Union of Women Teachers, the National Association of Head Teachers and the Association of School and College Leaders voted to agree that the pay award recommended by the Independent Pay Review Body was sufficient to not take industrial action on pay this term.School teachers will receive the largest pay award in three decades of 6.5% beginning in September 2023. Alongside this, the Government has met the manifesto commitment to give all new teachers a starting salary of at least £30,000. The Department is also providing schools with £525 million this year and £900 million next year to fund the award. This comes on top of the £2 billion a year financing in schools announced at the Autumn Statement 2022, which will take school funding to its highest level in history. Combined, this means school funding will now be nearly £60 billion in the 2024/25 financial year.Alongside additional funding, the Department has committed to convening a taskforce comprised of union representatives, experts, and experienced practitioners. The Secretary of State will continue to work closely with unions on issues that matter to teachers, including through the Workload Reduction Taskforce, to explore how the Department can go further to support head teachers with workloads and enable teachers and head teachers to focus on high quality teaching.The Government plays no role in setting or making recommendations regarding pay in colleges or other further education (FE) institutions. For the first time ever, the Secretary of State for Education announced that the Department will provide additional financing in the FE sector of £185 million in financial year 2023/24 and £285 million in the 2024/25 financial year. This funding will enable colleges to address key priorities, including supporting recruitment and retention. This funding is in addition to the £125 million of funding that it has already been announced will be available in the 2023/24 financial year to boost the national 16 to 19 funding rate and subject specific funding. This means that 16 to 19 institutions will see a larger than expected increase to funding rates.

Childcare: Houghton and Sunderland South

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an estimate of the average cost of a full time nursery place for a two year old in Houghton and Sunderland South constituency.

David Johnston: The department does not collect the requested information. However, the department does collect information on childcare and early years provision through the Survey of Childcare and Early Years Providers. This covers group-based providers, school-based providers, and childminders in a representative overview of childcare and early years provision in England. This data is collected at a local authority, rather than constituency, level. According to the 2022 Survey of Childcare and Early Years Providers, the mean hourly fee charged for a 2-year-old by childcare providers in the Sunderland local authority area was estimated to be £4.68 per hour. Using this figure, the department could estimate that for a 2-year-old child attending a setting in the Sunderland local authority area for 30 hours a week, this would be £140.40. From September, the department is investing an additional £204 million to increase the average rates paid to childcare and early years providers for 2-year-olds to £7.95 per hour from £6. Disadvantaged children, including those with Education, Health and Care plans and looked after children, can qualify for 15 hours free early education for 2-year-olds, a year before all children become eligible for 15 hours at ages 3 and 4. Eligible working parents of children aged nine months to two years will qualify for 30 free hours from September 2025. By 2027/28, the government expects to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education, helping families with pre-school children with their childcare costs. This represents the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.

Schools: Artificial Intelligence

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department is taking steps to encourage the use of artificial intelligence in schools.

Nick Gibb: The Department recognises that technology, when used appropriately, including artificial intelligence (AI), has the potential to reduce workload. The Department wants to capitalise on the opportunities it presents for education as well as addressing the risks and challenges. On 29 March 2023, the Department published a position statement on the use of generative AI in education following open access to tools such as ChatGPT, Google Bard and others, recognising that these tools are already being used in education. The Department ran a call for evidence to gather the experiences and expertise across education, to support continued evidence generation and identify where further work is required. The call for evidence closed on 23 August 2023 and the findings will be published in November 2023. The Department is commissioning a project to better understand and test possible uses for generative AI in education, based on responses to the call for evidence to explore, for example, whether it can be used for marking and feedback. This project will help us to build a robust evidence base to inform future policy and to further explore the opportunities this technology presents. It will involve AI experts and educators. The Department intends to publish the findings of this project in Spring 2024.

Alternative Education

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the amount of money spent by (a) local authorities and (b) schools on placing pupils in unregistered alternative provision settings in the last year.

David Johnston: I refer the hon. Member for Twickenham to the answer of 26 of July 2023, to Question 194799.

Maintained Schools: Solar Power

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the number of local authority maintained schools that have installed solar panels.

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the number of local authority maintained schools that have installed heat pumps.

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the number of local authority maintained schools that have installed smart meters.

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the number of local authority maintained schools that have installed wind turbines.

Nick Gibb: The education sector in the UK will play a critical role in positively responding to climate change and inspiring action on an international stage. The Department’s vision is for the UK education sector to be a world leader in sustainability and climate change by 2030. The Department is helping to create a sustainable future through education, developing the skills needed for a green economy, and supporting all sectors to reach net zero targets. That is why well maintained, safe and energy efficient school buildings are a priority for the Department.Over £15 billion has been allocated for improving the condition of schools since 2015, including £1.8 billion committed this financial year. The school rebuilding programme will also transform buildings at 500 schools over the next decade, prioritising schools in poor condition and delivering new buildings which are net carbon zero in operation. To date, 400 schools have been announced, including 239 in December 2022. In 2022/23 the department announced an additional £500 million in funding to improve buildings at schools and colleges, prioritising energy efficiency. Up to £635 million over the financial years 2023/24 and 2024/25 has been made available through the public sector decarbonisation scheme for installing low carbon heating and energy efficiency measures in public buildings, with a minimum of 30% going to education settings.It is the responsibility of those who run schools, whether academy trusts, Local Authorities, or voluntary-aided school bodies, to invest in and manage the maintenance of their school estates. The department does not hold an up-to-date assessment of the capacity schools have in solar panels, heat pumps, smart meters and wind turbines. The Department’s ongoing condition survey, Condition Data Collection 2, will give us a better understanding once it is complete in 2026.

GCE A-level

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of pupils taking A-Levels received each grade in each academic year since 2019.

Nick Gibb: The number of A levels entered by students aged 16-18 in England, and the grades awarded since the 2018/19 academic year are set out in the following table:GradeNumberProportion2018/192019/202020/212021/222018/192019/202020/212021/22A*57,733102,624141,457114,3517.9%14.4%19.1%14.8%A129,611171,431187,520166,87617.8%24.1%25.3%21.6%B188,454194,135188,995201,55625.9%27.3%25.5%26.1%C175,557155,674136,531152,20324.1%21.9%18.4%19.7%D109,77665,34059,08985,52515.1%9.2%8.0%11.1%E48,10420,01523,62937,7716.6%2.8%3.2%4.9%U16,5771,7373,54811,1972.3%0.2%0.5%1.4%Total entries1727,415712,171741,826772,541Examination entries are for the academic year stated, after discounting. Total entries includes pending awardsThe number of A level awards and grades is published in the ‘A level and other 16 to 18 results’ statistical release. The proportions are calculated as those numbers divided by total A level entries.Due to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic, the summer examination series was cancelled in both 2020 and 2021. Alternative processes were set up to award grades (Centre Assessment Grades in 2020, Teacher Assessed Grades in 2021). A level examinations returned in 2022 and adaptations were made, such as providing advance information. The approach to grading for 2022 examinations broadly reflected a midpoint between results in 2019 and 2021.Examinations and assessments for AS level, A level and vocational and technical qualifications returned to pre-pandemic arrangements in 2023. Ofqual set out that grading will include an allowance for disruption so that overall results will be similar to those of 2019. So where national performance is found to be lower than it was prior to the pandemic, senior examiners will make allowances when setting grade boundaries.

Pre-school Education: Special Educational Needs

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities and Alternative Provision Improvement Plan, how many early years staff have signed up for training to gain a Level 3 early years SENCO qualification.

David Johnston: By 24 August 2023, there had been 4,099 Special Education Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) who had signed up to the Level 3 Early Years SENCO training.

Sign Language: Loans

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many Advanced Learner Loans were granted for courses in British Sign Language in each of the last five years.

Robert Halfon: The number of Advance Learner Loans for courses in British Sign Language per enrolment and academic year since the 2017/18 academic year are included in the table attached. These counts have been rounded to the nearest five and do not include loans for courses in Irish Sign Language.Advance learner loan table  (xlsx, 17.5KB)

Schools: Mental Health Services

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many full-time equivalent mental health professionals were working in schools in the (a) 2019-20, (b) 2020-21, (c) 2021-22 and (d) 2022-23 academic years.

David Johnston: The requested information on mental health professionals working in schools is not collected centrally.The department collects information on staff working in state funded schools via the annual School Workforce Census but does not directly identify mental health professionals. The results are published in the annual ‘School Workforce in England’ national statistics release, accessible at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-workforce-in-england.The mental health of children and young people is a government priority. To expand access to early mental health support, the department is working with NHS England to increase the number of Mental Health Support Teams (MHSTs) working with schools and colleges. These teams include trained professionals who can offer support to children experiencing common mental health problems and liaise with external specialist services to help pupils get the right support. As of April 2023, MHSTs covered 35% of pupils in schools and learners in further education in England. A further 100 teams are expected to be operational by April 2024, when MHSTs will cover an estimated 44% of pupils and learners.

Students: Debts

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an estimate of the median level of student debt held by people in Enfield North constituency.

Robert Halfon: The median debt of full-time undergraduate borrowers funded by Student Finance England, whose postcode is within the Enfield North constituency and who entered repayment within the last five years is £44,881.70. The median debt includes tuition fee and maintenance loans.The borrower’s postcode refers to the current contact or home address supplied by the borrower to the Student Loans Company.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Youth Covid-19 Support Fund

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Youth Covid Support Fund 2021.

Stuart Andrew: The government recognises the vital role that youth services and activities play in improving the life chances and wellbeing of young people.On 25 November 2020, the government announced the £16.5 million Youth Covid-19 Support Fund (YCSF). This stabilisation funding was to support youth organisations to mitigate the impact of lost income during the winter period, due to the coronavirus pandemic, and ensure services providing vital support to young people could remain open. The fund opened for applications on 15 January 2021 and closed on 19 February 2021.The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. The department also conducts post-event assurance and evaluation of the outcomes achieved. The evaluation for the YCSF was published 1 February 2022 and can be found here.

Youth Services: Grants

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Youth Voice 2021 Grant.

Stuart Andrew: The government recognises the vital role that youth services and activities play in improving the life chances and wellbeing of young people.The Youth Voice Group Grant was to support young people across England to participate in the development of policy affecting them, enabling more young people to have their voices heard and participate in decision making on a national policy level.The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives.The Youth Engagement Impact Study, which includes the Youth Voice 2021 Grant, can be found here.

Youth Investment Fund

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Youth Investment Fund 1718.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Youth Investment Fund 1819.

Stuart Andrew: The government recognises the vital role that youth services and activities play in improving the life chances and wellbeing of young people.The Youth Investment Fund (2017-2020) supported open access youth services in six regions of England by funding 90 organisations supporting young people’s development, building their confidence and helping them to become happy, healthy, and economically active adults.The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. The evaluation for the Youth Investment Fund can be found here.

Youth Accelerator Fund

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Youth Accelerator Fund 1920.

Stuart Andrew: The government recognises the vital role that youth services and activities play in improving the life chances and wellbeing of young people.The Youth Accelerator Fund increased positive activities for young people by providing extra sessions in youth clubs, delivered by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s arm's-length bodies (ALBs) and UK Youth in the financial year 2019/20.The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. ALBs funded through YAF were not responsible for evaluating the effectiveness of the awards beyond the fund’s lifetime. The department and its public bodies deliver all grant funding in line with the Government Functional Standard GovS 015: Grants.

Sanitary Protection: Taxation

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Tampon Tax 20/21 Fund.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Tampon Tax 18/19 Fund.

Stuart Andrew: The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. The department also conducts post-event assurance and evaluation of the outcomes achieved. Evaluation for the Tampon Tax Fund 2016-2022 can be accessed here.

Voluntary Work: Grants

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the VCS Emergency Partnership Grant.

Stuart Andrew: The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. The department also conducts post-event assurance and evaluation of the outcomes achieved.The evaluation for the VCS Emergency Partnership Grant can be accessed here. This grant was evaluated as part of the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise COVID-19 Emergency Funding Package.

Loneliness: Grants

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Loneliness Covid-19 Fund.

Stuart Andrew: The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. The department also conducts post-event assurance and evaluation of the outcomes achieved. The evaluation for the Loneliness Covid-19 Fund can be accessed here.

Loneliness: Grants

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Let's Talk Loneliness Grants.

Stuart Andrew: The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. The department and its public bodies deliver all grant funding in line with the Government Functional Standard GovS 015: Grants. Due to the scale of funding for the Let’s Talk Loneliness Grants, this involved monitoring throughout delivery and a final outcomes report provided to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, including survey findings.

Commonwealth Games: Grants

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Commonwealth Games Associated Grants 2021-2223.

Stuart Andrew: All grants associated with the delivery of the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games have now closed and met their objectives.The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games came in on time and under its £778 million budget, which included £594 million of funding from central government. The Games have accelerated investment and regeneration in Birmingham, the West Midlands and beyond.This core public investment has also helped to unlock over £85 million additional funding from a range of bodies including a £35 million investment from Sport England to deliver a physical activity legacy.The government is committed to robust evaluation of the impacts driven by its investments. An interim evaluation report on the impact of the Games has shown it has added £870 million GVA to the UK economy, with a final impact report to be published in early 2024.

Social Enterprises: Grants

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Social Impact Investment 2021.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Place Based Impact Investing - Collaborative Research Project.

Stuart Andrew: The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. Grants awarded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to the Impact Investing Institute in 2020-21 (‘Social Impact Investment 2021’ and ‘Place Based Impact Investing - Collaborative Research Project’) were precursors to and informed their current, DCMS-funded, Place-based Impact Investing Programme. A longitudinal evaluation of the programme is currently underway, and the final output is expected to be received by March 2025.

Community Development: Grants

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Place Based Social Action Programme 1819.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Place Based Social Action Programme 20/21.

Stuart Andrew: The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. The department also conducts evaluation of the outcomes achieved.The evaluation for Phase One (2018/19) of the Place Based Social Action programme is available here. The evaluation at Phase Two (2020/21) is available here.The programme is ongoing and Phase Three is due to continue until 2024. It is administered by the National Lottery Community Fund. An evaluation of Phase Three will be published in due course.

Culture: North of England

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Key Fund - Northern Cultural Regeneration Fund 2021.

Stuart Andrew: The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. A full impact report for the ‘Northern Cultural Regeneration Fund - Social Investment Fund’ is expected in 2024, however an interim impact summary in 2020 demonstrated that the fund had supported 26 businesses across six different impact themes, within 10 of the 11 Northern Local Enterprise Partnerships, and leveraged £600,000 in non-governmental funding.

Life Chances Fund

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Life Chances Fund.

Sir John Whittingdale: The department sets objectives for grant funding when designing the grant scheme and allocates funding in accordance with those objectives. The department also conducts post-event assurance and evaluation of the outcomes achieved. The evaluation for the Life Chances Fund (LCF) is currently ongoing. The full evaluation strategy and interim reports have been published here.

Digital Broadcasting: Rural Areas

Selaine Saxby: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will take steps to safeguard the provision of digital terrestrial television and radio broadcast services beyond 2040 for communities in rural areas; and if she will make a statement.

Sir John Whittingdale: I refer my honourable friend to the answer I gave on 5 June 2023 to her question UIN 186801.

Television: Mental Health

Nadia Whittome: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has held discussions with television production companies on mental health support for reality television (a) contestants and (b) production staff.

Sir John Whittingdale: The government has been clear that all broadcasters and production companies have a responsibility to the mental health and wellbeing of both participants and viewers, and must ensure that they have appropriate levels of support in place.It is an employer's duty to protect the health, safety and welfare of all their employees and other people who might be affected by their work activities. In 2019, following a rise in complaints about the mental health and wellbeing of programme participants, Ofcom launched a review of their protections for people who appear on television. New Ofcom rules to protect the wellbeing of people who appear on television have now been in place since 5 April 2021.In addition, the government is keen that the creative industries maintain momentum in improving working practices. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) hosted a creative industries-wide roundtable on welfare issues in June 2021, at which a number of factors were identified as contributing towards instances of bullying, harassment and discrimination (BHD) in the creative industries. Work on the BHD agenda has been led by Creative UK and has resulted in industry establishing the Creative Industries Independent Standards Authority (CIISA) to address these issues. It is well supported by the Broadcast TV sector, who provided seed funding for the CIISA. Further information about the scope and work of the CIISA can be found on their website.Additionally, work is being done to improve job quality for all those working in the creative industries. The Good Work Review, published in February 2023 by the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre, was co-funded by DCMS and is the first sectoral deep dive of its kind into job quality and working practice in the creative industries. As part of the Creative Industries Sector Vision the government has committed, together with industry, to set out an action plan to assess the recommendations of this review.

Football: Scotland

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make it her policy to require all Scotland association football matches to be shown for free on television.

Sir John Whittingdale: The government believes that certain sporting events of national interest should be shown on free-to-air television rather than behind a paywall, so that they can be enjoyed by as wide an audience as possible. That is why we have the listed events regime.In determining what events form part of this regime, a balance between accessibility and the ability of sporting organisations to generate revenues from commercial broadcast arrangements to invest in the development of their sports from the grassroots up. The Government believes that the current list strikes an appropriate balance, and has no current plans to undertake a full review of the events on the list.In this instance, it would be for the Scottish Government to consider whether this balance is struck, and the UK Government would then take those considerations into account.

Television Licences: Concessions

Sally-Ann Hart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, for what reason payment for Accommodation for Residential Care Concessionary TV Licence can only be paid by cheque and not by BACS; and if she will take steps to ensure that the TV Licensing Authority will accept BACS for such payments.

Sir John Whittingdale: The BBC is responsible for the administration and enforcement of the TV licensing system, and is operationally and editorially independent of government. The BBC have confirmed ARC scheme payments can be paid by BACS transfer as well as cheque.

Television Licences

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had recent discussions with TV Licensing on the effectiveness of their policy on sending letters to people who have already told them they do not need a TV licence.

Sir John Whittingdale: Ministers regularly talk to the BBC about a range of issues, including licence fee enforcement.Under the Communications Act 2003 the BBC is responsible for the collection and enforcement of the licence fee, not the Government. Given the BBC’s independence from government it would not be appropriate for the Government to seek to intervene on operational decisions on enforcement action. Nonetheless, the Government expects the BBC to collect the licence fee in an efficient and proportionate manner, and to treat all vulnerable people with sensitivity in doing so.The TV Licensing website advises households that have recently completed a No Licence Needed declaration to ignore letters from TV Licensing asking them to buy a TV Licence. It also states that a No Licence Needed declaration is valid for two years, and that after this time, letters will be sent unless a household reconfirms its declaration.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment the Prime Minister has made of the effectiveness of the re-formed Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Sir John Whittingdale: The Prime Minister has refocused the department, recognising the importance of the cultural, media and sport sectors to our economy and to build on the UK’s position as a world leader in the creative industries. Our cultural, media, sporting, Creative Industries and charity sectors are worth £145 billion (8% of UK GVA) and support almost four million jobs.Since February 2023, the department has continued to effectively deliver on the Government’s priority to grow the economy, and create better-paid jobs and opportunity right across the country. As an example, in June 2023 the department published the Creative Industries Sector Vision, which set out our ambition to grow the creative industries by £50 billion and support a million more jobs by 2030, with £77 million of new funding for the sector announced.The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has also supported additional government priorities, including the delivery of major events like the King’s Coronation and Eurovision, contributing to the government’s substantive legislative programme with the draft Media Bill, a Football White Paper and a Gambling White Paper, and increasing investment in our cultural and creative sectors, grassroots sports facilities, youth programmes, and supporting our charitable and leisure sectors with the increased cost of living.

Internet: Advertising

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Government is taking steps to regulate online advertisements selling financial products not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Sir John Whittingdale: As part of the Online Advertising Programme, the Government will introduce a new and targeted regulatory framework for online advertising, which focuses on tackling illegal advertising. This includes illegal or scam adverts for financial products and services, and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport will work closely with the FCA and HM Treasury.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Written Questions

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps their Department is taking to improve response times to written parliamentary questions.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what data their Department holds on the average response time to written parliamentary questions in the last six months; and what assessment they have made of the adequacy of that response time.

Sir John Whittingdale: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) recognises the importance of providing timely responses to Written Parliamentary Questions (WPQs) and every effort is made to provide prompt responses to Members.The House of Commons Procedure Committee publishes statistics on a sessional basis and the Committee’s most recent report on WPQs performance was published in July 2022. This report noted that, in the 2021-22 session of Parliament, DCMS answered 91% of ordinary questions substantively within five working days, and 90% of named day questions on the named day.The department does not hold a record of the average response time to WPQs and data provided by the House of Commons Table Office does not reveal this information. The most recent Table Office performance statistics show that between 3 February and 30 March 2023, DCMS answered 91% of all ordinary questions within five working days, and 87% of all named day questions on the named day. Statistics for April to September 2023 have not yet been provided by the Table Office.While DCMS answering performance exceeds the 85% timeliness target expected by the Procedure Committee, we continually seek opportunities for improvement; doing so in regular collaboration with other departments across Whitehall to share best practice. DCMS has access to regular training led by the Parliamentary Capability Team through the Government Campus. DCMS also runs regular training sessions within the department to further improve the quality and timeliness of our responses to written questions.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Freedom of Information

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps their Department is taking to improve the response time to FOI requests.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the average time taken by her Department to respond to freedom of information requests in the 2022-23 financial year.

Sir John Whittingdale: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) recognises our statutory obligations under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act 2000 and is committed to government transparency. Every effort is made to provide prompt responses to FOI requests, and we continually seek opportunities for improvement in these areas; doing so in regular collaboration with other departments across Whitehall to share best practice and through an open dialogue with the Information Commissioner’s Office.In Q1 2023, the department issued 88% of requests within the 20 working day timeline or a permitted extension applied to the case; a 23% increase in comparison to Q1 2022. Official National Statistics on FOI performance for all central government departments and other monitored bodies can be found here. The department does not hold a record of the average response time for FOI requests.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Correspondence

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps they are taking to reduce backlogs of Member correspondence in their office.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what data their Department holds on the average response time to enquiries by Members; and what assessment they have made of the adequacy of that response time.

Sir John Whittingdale: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) attaches great importance to the effective and timely handling of correspondence, particularly from Parliamentarians. As per the Cabinet Office’s Guide to Handling Correspondence, departments and agencies should aim to respond to correspondence within a 20-working day target deadline. Every effort is made to provide prompt responses to enquiries, and we continually seek opportunities for improvement in these areas; doing so in regular collaboration with other departments across Whitehall to share best practice.With regards to timeliness of responses to enquiries received by members, the Cabinet Office published data on this for 2022 for all government departments on GOV.UK in March 2023, and will be publishing data for Q1 and Q2 2023 shortly. In 2022, DCMS answered 62% of ministerial correspondence cases within 20 working days, and this dataset can be found here. The department does not hold a record of the average response time for correspondence.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Disclosure of Information

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the average response time to subject access requests was by their Department in the latest period for which data is available; and if they will make an assessment of the adequacy of that response time.

Sir John Whittingdale: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport responded to Subject Access Requests (SARs) in an average of 20 days for the period from 1 January 2023 to 31 August 2023. This is within the legal time frame of one month for a reply.This average figure includes some SARs where we sent a timely notification to the requestor advising that we were extending the time to respond beyond one month because the request was complex.

Film and Television: Strikes

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, What steps her Department is taking to help support individuals employed in the film and television sector in the UK from being impacted by the Writers Guild of America strike.

Sir John Whittingdale: Strike action by the Screen Actors Guild and The Writers Guild of America is a US industrial matter. However, the film industry is a global ecosystem and the Government understands that current strike action in the US is impacting our own productions and crew here in the UK. The UK benefits from a significant volume of US investment, with investors attracted not only by our competitive tax reliefs and state of the art studio infrastructure, but by our world-class, skilled crew.We are engaging with industry to understand the impact of continued US strike action and continuing our support for the screen industries through competitive tax reliefs, investing in studio infrastructure, supporting innovation, and promoting independent content.Additionally, HMRC has a ‘Time to Pay’ policy which may provide some support to affected crew. This policy allows businesses and individuals experiencing temporary financial difficulty to schedule their tax debts into affordable, sustainable, and tailored instalment arrangements with no maximum repayment period. These arrangements can be applied to any tax debt and are flexible, so they can be amended if circumstances change. More information about Time to Pay can be found by calling HMRC’s dedicated helpline on 0800 024 1222.

Clothing: Manufacturing Industries

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department have taken to improve (a) environmental and (b) human sustainability practices in the fashion industry.

Sir John Whittingdale: The textiles and fashion industry plays an important role in the UK’s social and cultural heritage, and is a major driver of economic growth - with UK designers and manufacturers exporting around the world. Improving the creative industries’ environmental impact was identified as a priority in our Creative Industries Sector Vision, published in June 2023.The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) works with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) on the work they are doing on textiles waste management. Defra’s ambitions for minimising textile waste are outlined in ‘Maximising Resources, Minimising Waste’ which constitutes a new Waste Prevention Plan and was published on 28 July 2023. Defra funds Textiles 2030, a voluntary initiative with over 110 signatories from the fashion manufacturing industry covering 62% by sales of the UK clothing market. Signatories are committed to reducing their carbon and water usage and to other circular economy principles such as agreeing good design principles so that their products are durable and recyclable.DCMS also supports the UK Research and Investment (UKRI) £15 million Circular Fashion programme, launched in 2022 to bring the sector, academia and government together to understand and drive the fashion and textiles industry towards sustainable and responsible practices.

Clothing: Manufacturing Industries

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department have taken to steps to support people from disadvantaged backgrounds in the fashion industry with (a) the cost of sending samples and (b) other costs associated with running a small business.

Sir John Whittingdale: The textiles and fashion industry plays an important role in the UK’s social and cultural heritage, and is a major driver of economic growth - with UK designers and manufacturers exporting around the world. Recognising this contribution, HM Treasury has named the creative industries, including fashion, as one of the top five priority growth sectors - underscored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s (DCMS) recent Sector Vision, which sets out ambitious growth targets.In the sector vision and elsewhere, DCMS has a number of initiatives that aim to improve access to the creative and fashion industries for those from disadvantaged backgrounds. The Creative Careers Programme has been relaunched with £1 million HM Government funding (22/23-24/25). Aimed at young people aged 11-18 from underrepresented backgrounds, the Creative Careers Programme is targeting 77 priority areas across England. DCMS also engages with our government-appointed Creative Industries Disability and Access Ambassadors who are working on increasing access to the creative industries for those with disabilities.The government is supporting UK businesses with running costs through the Recovery Loan Scheme, designed to support access to finance for UK businesses as they look to invest and grow. Businesses can use the finance for any legitimate business purpose – including managing cashflow, investment and growth. Additionally, Local Enterprise Partnership Growth Hubs can also be a source of free advice and finance. This is in addition to the Energy Bills Discount Scheme; the increased Employment Allowance of £5,000, which takes the smallest 40% of businesses out of paying any National Insurance at all; and setting the Annual Investment Allowance at £1 million permanently. To support businesses with exporting goods (including samples) the Government's Export Support Service (ESS) provides guidance and advice in response to queries about exporting and ATA Carnets.As part of the Creative Industries Sector Vision, the government announced £2 million funding to support London Fashion Week over the next two years - this will go towards supporting emerging designer talent and increasing access to the sector.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Public Inquiries

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport,  what has been the average time taken to respond to public inquiries by her Department in each of the last five years; and whether she plans to introduce measures to improve this

Sir John Whittingdale: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport works closely with public inquiries to ensure that we respond as fulsomely and helpfully as possible, in time frames that are agreed directly with the Inquiry itself. The department prioritises complying with the important work of statutory public inquiries.

Culture: Autism

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to page 53 of the consultation document entitled Disability Action Plan: Consultation, published in July 2023, what steps her Department is taking to encourage autism-friendly programmes in the cultural and heritage sectors; and whether she (a) has made and (b) plans to make an assessment of the effectiveness of those programmes.

Sir John Whittingdale: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport works closely with its arm’s-length bodies, such as Arts Council England (ACE), the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) and Historic England (HE), to ensure that the cultural and heritage sectors are accessible to everyone, including those who are autistic.ACE provides regular funding to disability-led organisations across the country through its National Portfolio Organisation investment programme. This programme includes organisations that support neurodivergent creatives and autism-friendly programming – for example, Unanima Theatre: a new joiner to the 2023–26 investment programme, which has an exclusively learning disabled and autistic cast who draw on their lives and experiences when creating work.More broadly, ACE has worked to increase the investment in disability-led organisations across the National Portfolio; within the current portfolio there are now 32 such organisations. ACE monitors each organisation throughout the funding period, in this case 2023–26, to ensure they deliver the plans and activity agreed with ACE.NLHF regularly funds projects that focus on autism. In 2022, it awarded £245,104 to The National Autistic Society which celebrated and preserved the stories, voices and memories of autistic people. In the same year, VocalEyes was awarded £99,814 to launch a digital heritage volunteering initiative providing neurodiverse people with valuable heritage volunteering experience and contributing to vital access and inclusion work in the sector. As a funding body, NLHF expects funding recipients to report back on expected outcomes and the intended effectiveness/impact of the programme.Finally, HE has recently launched a new funding round for its Everyday Heritage Grants programme, with neurodiversity and disability identified as groups of people HE is particularly keen to engage and fund. HE will be measuring funded projects looking at the impact on wellbeing outcomes.

Tickets: Sales

Sir Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to introduce legislation for the uncapped secondary ticketing market.

Sir John Whittingdale: We are committed to supporting fair and transparent ticket pricing and tackling unacceptable behaviour in this market.We have strengthened the law in relation to ticketing information requirements and have introduced a criminal offence of using automated software to buy more tickets online than is allowed. We also support the work of enforcement agencies in this area, such as the Competition and Markets Authority, National Trading Standards, and the advertising industry's own regulator, the Advertising Standards Authority.Ultimately, ticket pricing strategies are a matter for event organisers and ticketing platforms, providing they comply with relevant legislation, particularly regarding transparency to customers on how tickets are priced, in order to help consumers make a fair and informed decision.

Tickets: Touting

Duncan Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with relevant stakeholders on the reselling of tickets for (a) music and (b) other events at prices above the face value of the ticket (i) online and (ii) by other means.

Sir John Whittingdale: His Majesty’s Government is committed to supporting fair and transparent ticket pricing and tackling unacceptable behaviour in this market.We have strengthened the law in relation to ticketing information requirements and have introduced a criminal offence of using automated software to buy more tickets online than is allowed. We also support the work of enforcement agencies in this area, such as the Competition and Markets Authority, National Trading Standards, and the advertising industry's own regulator, the Advertising Standards Authority.We engage with a range of key organisations and individuals operating in the ticketing sector to ensure a fair and transparent system. This includes STAR (the Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers, the self-regulatory body for the entertainment ticketing industry in the UK), the CMA, Fanfair Alliance (the campaigning body against industrial scale online ticket touting), and, where appropriate, primary and secondary ticketing businesses.Ultimately, ticket pricing strategies are a matter for event organisers and ticketing platforms, providing they comply with relevant legislation, particularly regarding transparency to customers on how tickets are priced, in order to help consumers make a fair and informed decision.

Breaching of Limits on Ticket Sales Regulations 2018

Giles Watling: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Breaching of Limits on Ticket Sales Regulations 2018 at preventing the use of automated software to purchase more tickets than the maximum permitted number.

Sir John Whittingdale: We are committed to supporting fair and transparent ticket pricing and tackling unacceptable behaviour in this market.We have strengthened the law in relation to ticketing information requirements and have introduced a criminal offence of using automated software to buy more tickets online than is allowed. We also support the work of enforcement agencies in this area, such as the Competition and Markets Authority, National Trading Standards, and the advertising industry's own regulator, the Advertising Standards Authority.The effectiveness of any legislation is dependent on people and organisations reporting suspected breaches to the relevant enforcement agencies, and we strongly encourage anyone with evidence of suspected ticketing fraud to report it to them.

British Museum

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she has had recent discussion with the Trustees of the British Museum on the protection of its holdings.

Sir John Whittingdale: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is closely monitoring the situation at the British Museum, and engaging directly with the British Museum on this issue.The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport has spoken with the Chairman of the British Museum on a number of occasions and has sought assurances on the immediate measures that have been put in place to increase security at the Museum. The Secretary of State has also sought assurances on the details of the scope and timetable for the independent review of security that the British Museum has instigated, which is being conducted under new leadership.The Secretary of State has set out further details on the situation at the British Museum in her written statement to Parliament issued on 4 September 2023: this can be read online here.

Department of Health and Social Care

Miscarriage

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that miscarriages are systematically (a) counted and (b) reported.

Maria Caulfield: Following the publication of the Pregnancy Loss Review in July 2023, NHS England are currently exploring the potential for mid-trimester (12-24 weeks) loss data to be collected using the Maternity Services Data Set collection, which will be reviewed early next year as part of the plan to update the Digital Maternity Record Standard.

Vaccination: Take-up

Elliot Colburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to reduce variations in the level of the uptake of routine vaccination programmes.

Maria Caulfield: The Department works with the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and NHS England to improve immunisation coverage for all, including those from under-vaccinated communities, through a range of initiatives. This includes data to better identify under-served individuals and populations, training for healthcare professionals and communication with the public, offering alternative delivery routes and local outreach efforts to connect with communities with historically lower uptake are informed of the benefits of vaccines. It also includes ensuring everyone can access through provision of immunisation leaflets available in over 15 languages as well as being available in braille, BSL, large print and audio versions.It is vitally important that everyone takes up the vaccinations to which they are entitled; for themselves, their families, and wider society. Anyone unsure about their eligibility or vaccination status should contact their GP for advice.

Maternity Services

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has had with NHS England on regional variations in standards of maternity care.

Maria Caulfield: The Department continues to work in partnership with NHS England to improve standards of maternity care. We are clear that systems and trusts need to identify when maternity services are at risk of providing unsafe care so that action can be taken. NHS England has recently established a Reading the Signals Data Co-ordination Group who will bring together data projects to identify and support trusts who may be vulnerable to bad outcomes.The Maternity and Neonatal Outcomes Group, also formed by NHS England, is progressing work towards identifying outcome measures which will help identify trends and variation amongst regions nationally.

Maternity Services: Staff

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure (a) safe and (b) efficient staffing levels in maternity units.

Maria Caulfield: The Government has added £165 million of recurring investment to the annual maternity budget since 2021, to grow and support the maternity workforce and improve neonatal care.The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan sets out the steps the National Health Service and its partners need to take to deliver an NHS workforce that meets the changing needs of the population over the next 15 years. It will put the workforce on a sustainable footing for the long term. The plan is backed with over £2.4 billion over the next five years to fund additional education and training places over five years. This is on top of increases to education and training investment, reaching £6.1 billion over the next two years.

Infant Mortality

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what targets his Department has on reducing inequalities in (a) pregnancy loss and (b) baby deaths.

Maria Caulfield: The Department is committed to tackling disparities in maternal outcomes. In March 2023, NHS England published its three-year delivery plan for maternity and neonatal services. The plan outlines an ambition to reduce inequalities for all in access, experience and outcomes and provide targeted support where health inequalities exist.We will measure progress against our equity aims for mothers and babies through metrics described in the Equity and Equality Guidance for Local Maternity systems.

Health Services: Women

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS England staff are working on fertility aspects of the Women's Health Strategy for England as of September 2023; and what portion of those staff are full time.

Maria Caulfield: NHS England has advised that it has a number of different teams working on different elements of the Women’s Health Strategy, including staff within the maternity team. Senior clinical leadership and advice is being provided by the National Speciality Advisor for Gynaecology until a National Clinical Director for Women’s Health is appointed.Strategic oversight of this work is provided by the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) for England and the Deputy CNO for Safety and Improvement.

Health Services: Women

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, omitting staff working on maternity care, how many NHS England staff are working on implementation of the Women's Health Strategy for England as of September 2023; and what portion of those staff are full time.

Maria Caulfield: NHS England has different teams working on different elements of the Women’s Health Strategy, including staff within the maternity team. Many of the staff work on a range of issues including the Women’s Health Strategy. Senior clinical leadership and advice is being provided by the National Speciality Advisor for Gynaecology until a National Clinical Director for Women’s Health is appointed.Strategic oversight of this work is provided by the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) for England and the Deputy CNO for Safety and Improvement.

Health Services: Women

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the press release published by his Department on 22 July 2023 entitled Boost for women and girls as Women’s Health Strategy turns one, what will be the remit of the new network of women’s health champions.

Maria Caulfield: The network of women’s health champions brings leaders in women’s health from every integrated care system in England. The network is co-chaired by Professor Dame Lesley Regan, the Women’s Health Ambassador for England, and Charlotte McArdle, Deputy Chief Nursing Officer for England. The network will facilitate collaboration and sharing of best practice, with the aim of supporting implementation of the Women’s Health Strategy and improving women’s health outcomes and reducing health inequalities.

Health Services: Women

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish a list of the members of the new network of women’s health champions.

Maria Caulfield: The list of the members of the network of women’s health champions is being published on the FutureNHS platform, which is accessible to local authority, National Health Service, and third sector staff.

Coronavirus: Disease Control

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the extent of water testing for Covid in the last 12 months.

Maria Caulfield: Wastewater monitoring for COVID-19 and its variants was stood down in April 2022 in response to the Government policy change to Living with COVID-19. Therefore, in England, there has been no wastewater testing for COVID-19 within the last 12 months. Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland have their own programmes, run independently of the approach in England.

Psychiatric Hospitals: Mother and Baby Units

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to increase the number of mother and baby units in mental health hospitals.

Maria Caulfield: Since April 2019, there has been a specialist community perinatal mental health service in every integrated care system area in England. Under the NHS Long Term Plan, at least 66,000 women with moderate to severe or complex perinatal mental health issues are expected to have access to these services from pre-conception to 24 months by March 2024.Work continues nationally to deliver a 49% increase in mother & baby unit bed capacity over 2015/16, representing a total of 164 beds, as committed to in response to the five-year forward view for mental health. So far NHS England has commissioned an additional 19 mother and baby units through National Health Service mental health trusts, with a total of 160 beds across England.

Migraines: Health Services

Dame Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of offering migraine specialist services at women’s health hubs.

Maria Caulfield: No specific assessment is planned.In July we announced that the £25 million investment in women’s health hubs is being distributed to every integrated care board (ICB), with each ICB receiving £595,000 in total over 2023/24 and 2024/25. ICBs have been asked to use the funding to establish or expand one women’s health hub within their system.It is important that services are provided in a way that best meets population needs and reduces health inequalities, and ICBs will determine which specific services their hub will offer. To support ICBs to establish women’s health hubs, we have published a cost-benefit analysis, and a core specification. The core specification sets out which services ICBs could consider incorporating into their hub model, either in terms of provision or signposting. Specialist services for migraines are not listed in the core specification, but this does not prevent women’s health hubs from providing or signposting to migraine services.

Mental Health Services: Children

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce waiting times for children with serious mental health problems.

Maria Caulfield: The NHS Long Term Plan commits to investing £2.3 billion extra funding a year in expanding and transforming mental health services by March 2024. This will allow an extra 345,000 more children and young people including those with serious mental illness, to get the National Health Service-funded mental health support they need.To support the mental health commitments in the NHS Long Term Plan, our aim is to grow the mental health workforce by an additional 27,000 staff by March 2024.NHS England has consulted on the potential to introduce five new waiting time standards as part of its clinically-led review of NHS Access Standards, including that children, young people and their families, presenting to community-based mental health services should start to receive care within four weeks from referral. As a first step, NHS England has shared and promoted guidance with its local system partners to consistently report waiting times to support the development of a baseline position. NHS England are working on the next steps.

Maternity Services: Research

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to encourage research in maternity care.

Maria Caulfield: The Department of Health and Social Care, through the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) funds a range of research in maternal and neonatal health focussing on the safety of maternity and neonatal services, and the national maternity ambition to halve maternal deaths, stillbirths and neonatal deaths and brain injury by 2025.The NIHR are currently commissioning research for the development of a patient-reported experience measure for use with women who experience maternity and neonatal services in the United Kingdom. This will provide timely, robust, feedback from users of maternity and neonatal services, to understand how users experience their service. The NIHR Policy Research Programme also fund a Policy Research Unit dedicated to Maternal & Neonatal Health & Care research based at the University of Oxford.Additionally, the NIHR support the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth group who have undertaken a number of reviews on alternative methods of maternity and post-natal care. The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including alternative methods of maternity and early post-natal care.

Childbirth

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the preterm birth rate was in (a) 2010 and (b) 2020.

Maria Caulfield: The definition used to monitor progress towards the pre-term birth element of the National Maternity Safety Ambition includes data on pre-term live births and stillbirths. Based on this definition, the preterm birth rate, live births and stillbirths, was 7.3 per 100 births in 2010 and was 7.5 per 100 births in 2020.

Health Services: Women

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to promote the women’s health area on the NHS website.

Maria Caulfield: As part of the Women’s Health Strategy, the Department committed to transform women’s health content on the National Health Service website. In July, we launched a new women’s health area on the NHS website, which brings together over 100 women’s health topics, alongside new and updated pages which include an adenomyosis page and a hormone replacement therapy medicines hub.The Department promoted the women’s health area via a one year on press release of the strategy on GOV.UK which is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/boost-for-women-and-girls-as-womens-health-strategy-turns-oneWe will continue to work with NHS England and others to look for opportunities to promote the women’s health area to ensure women and girls are aware of the information.

Women: Health Services

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department plans to take to assess the success of the women’s health area on the NHS website.

Maria Caulfield: The Department has worked with NHS England to develop the new women’s health area on the National Health Service website. NHS England are tracking a range of metrics to help us understand how people are using the new women’s health area.Since launch, around 4,000 people have visited the women’s health area each week, with most people continuing to look at content relating to menopause and vagina and vulva health. NHS England also continue to receive feedback via a survey published on the page.

Neurodiversity: Health Services

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people with (a) attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and (b) other types of neurodiversity receive the most effective (i) treatment and (ii) care for their conditions.

Maria Caulfield: We expect integrated care boards (ICBs) and National Health Service trusts to have due regard to relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and other types of neurodiversity such as autism when commissioning and providing services for people. It is the responsibility of ICBs to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, in line with these NICE guidelines.On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance for autism assessment services. These documents are aimed at helping to improve the experience of people referred for an autism assessment and include guidance on the provision of post-diagnostic support delivered shortly after diagnosis. This financial year, £4.2 million is available to improve services for autistic children and young people, including autism assessment services and pre and post diagnostic support, including the continuation of the ‘Autism in Schools’ programme.Additionally, each integrated care board is expected to have an Executive Lead for learning disability and autism to support them to deliver care and support for autistic people in their area. NHS England has recently published statutory guidance on these Executive Lead roles.

Coronavirus: Vaccination

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding has his Department allocated to process compensation claims caused by Covid-19 vaccines; and how much of that budget has been spent as of 16 August 2023.

Maria Caulfield: The Department has identified contingent liabilities relating to the COVID-19 vaccines and reports on these to Parliament on a confidential basis due to commercial sensitivities. Any spend incurred against these liabilities will be reported in the usual way in the Department’s Annual Report and Accounts.

Care Quality Commission: Technology

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what (a) steps his Department is taking to monitor the implementation of the new regulatory platform for the Care Quality Commission and (b) information relating to implementation his Department is collecting for analysis; what his planned timeframe is for completion of those reviews; and whether his Department plans to publish the findings of that work.

Maria Caulfield: There are no current plans to undertake a formal analysis or review of the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) new regulatory platform. The Department continues to monitor CQC’s progress on its new regulatory platform as part of regular governance and accountability meetings. As an independent body, the CQC may undertake its own analysis and review of its approach and systems for regulating health and social care providers in England.

Influenza: Vaccination

Chris Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to ask the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to update the baseline modelling and assumptions it uses to make decisions on the cost-effectiveness of vaccinating specific age cohorts against seasonal influenza.

Maria Caulfield: For the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to formally revisit the cost-effectiveness of vaccinating specific age cohorts against seasonal influenza, an up-to-date impact and cost effectiveness analysis would be required, and the UK Health Security Agency is in the process of updating the influenza model using more recent data, including accounting for changes due to the pandemic.There is currently uncertainty on any longer-term changes because of the pandemic to social contact patterns and the activity of flu in the population for a fully robust update to cost effectiveness analysis in the short term.

Autism

Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce waiting times for autism assessments.

Maria Caulfield: We expect integrated care boards to have due regard to relevant best practice guidelines when commissioning services, including for autism assessments. The waiting time standard recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is for a maximum waiting time of 13 weeks between a referral for an autism assessment and a first appointment.On 5 April 2023, NHS England published a national framework and operational guidance for autism assessment services. This guidance will help the National Health Service and local authorities improve autism assessment services and improve the experience for people referred to an autism assessment service. Additionally, in 2023/24, £4.2 million is available to improve services for autistic children and young people, including autism assessment services.

Vaccination: Manufacturing Industries

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department’s paper A review of the Vaccine Taskforce, published on 29 August 2023, what funds the Office for Life Sciences has to invest in additional vaccine production capacity in the UK in order to achieve the onshoring programme objective set for the Vaccines Taskforce.

Maria Caulfield: Through the Vaccine Taskforce, over £405 million was invested in the United Kingdom’s vaccine manufacturing capabilities across several modalities, to ensure a robust response to COVID-19 and future health emergencies. In December 2022 the Government signed a ten-year strategic partnership with Moderna which will have the capacity to produce up to 250 million cutting-edge mRNA vaccines per year onshore in the event of a pandemic. In May this year, the Government announced a Biomanufacturing Fund, worth up to £38 million, to incentivise investment in commercial-scale vaccines and biotherapeutics manufacturing.

Vaccination: Manufacturing Industries

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to A review of the Vaccine Taskforce, published by his Department on 29 August 2023, what additional vaccine production capacity, of any type, has been secured as a result of the investments made (a) by the Vaccine Taskforce and (b) subsequently by the Office for Life Sciences, as described in the report.

Maria Caulfield: Through the Vaccine Taskforce, over £405 million was invested in the United Kingdom’s vaccine manufacturing capabilities across several modalities, to ensure a robust response to COVID-19 and future health emergencies. In December 2022 the Government signed a ten-year strategic partnership with Moderna which will have the capacity to produce up to 250 million cutting-edge mRNA vaccines per year onshore in the event of a pandemic. In May this year, the Government announced a Biomanufacturing Fund, worth up to £38 million, to incentivise investment in commercial-scale vaccines and biotherapeutics manufacturing.

Mental Health Services

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that individuals experiencing a mental health crisis receive appropriate tailored care.

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to increase access to support for people experiencing a mental health crisis.

Maria Caulfield: The NHS Long Term Plan committed to delivering 100% coverage across the country of age-appropriate mental health crisis-care 24 hours a day, seven days a week via NHS 111 by April 2024. The Urgent and Emergency Care Recovery Plan reiterated this commitment and timescale. Delivering this commitment will enable anyone experiencing mental health crisis to access assessment and, if appropriate, onward referral and treatment at any time of the day by calling NHS 111. Mental health crisis lines are already available 24 hours a day, seven days a week in all areas of the country.The Department is investing £150 million in mental health urgent and emergency care infrastructure, including £7 million to fund up to 100 new mental health ambulances. The remaining £143 million is funding a range of new and improved facilities, including crisis cafes, crisis houses, urgent mental health assessment and care centres, health-based places of safety and the redesign and refurbishment of some existing suites and facilities including in emergency departments.

Vaccination: Databases

Elliot Colburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to improve (a) data collection and (b) reporting for routine immunisation programmes.

Maria Caulfield: The United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) is responsible for the published official and national statistics on vaccination coverage and adapts its data collection and reporting to incorporate new vaccines and changes to the immunisation programmes.UKHSA monitors vaccination coverage of all the routine immunisation programmes in England. Data for preschool immunisations is monitored through the COVER programme (Cover of Vaccinations Evaluated Rapidly). Data is collected and collated quarterly and annually measuring coverage at ages one, two and five years. The latest quarterly reports covers the period January to March 2023:  https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/cover-of-vaccination-evaluated-rapidly-cover-programme-2022-to-2023-quarterly-data/quarterly-vaccination-coverage-statistics-for-children-aged-up-to-5-years-in-the-uk-cover-programme-january-to-march-2023UKHSA also monitors and publishes data for England on the coverage of vaccinations offered to adolescents, adults, and the selective programmes, including shingles, PPV, pertussis for pregnant women, human papillomavirus (HPV), Td/IPV adolescent vaccine, MenACWY vaccine, influenza, BCG. Vaccination Uptake data can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/vaccine-uptake#cover-of-vaccination-evaluated-rapidly-programme.

Health Services: Women

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what proportion of women’s health hubs will provide Fracture Liaison Services.

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Government announcement of 8 March 2023, what proportion of the £25 million allocated for the creation of women’s health hubs will be invested in Fracture Liaison Services.

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the referral pathways will be for women to access women’s health hubs in order to benefit from Fracture Liaison Services.

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the (a) referral and (b) risk assessment criteria will be for referring women to women’s health hubs in order to access Fracture Liaison Services.

Maria Caulfield: In July 2023 we announced that the £25 million investment in women’s health hubs is being distributed to every integrated care board (ICB), with each ICB receiving £595,000 in total over 2023/24 and 2024/25. ICBs have been asked to use the funding to establish or expand one women’s health hub, including working with their local authority commissioners and within their system.It is important that services are provided in a way that best meets population needs and reduces health inequalities, and ICBs will determine which specific services their hub will offer. To support ICBs to establish women’s health hubs, we have published a cost-benefit analysis, and a core specification. The core specification sets out which services ICBs could consider incorporating into their hub model, either in terms of provision or signposting. Osteoporosis assessment and care, for example DEXA (bone density) scanning or fracture liaison services is included in the core specification as an area for consideration.Further information on women’s health hubs was published on GOV.UK in July 2023 at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/womens-health-hubs

Ian Harvey

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when Mr Ian Harvey, the former medical director at the Countess of Chester Hospital, was last employed (a) within the NHS and (b) an organisation overseen by his Department.

Will Quince: National Health Service staff records are not held centrally by the Department.

Members: Correspondence

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the written correspondence of 10 July 2023 from the hon. Member for Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport regarding social enterprises and the NHS pay offer.

Will Quince: The Department has received the correspondence and will reply as soon as possible.

Question

Stephen McPartland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many children were (a) on a waiting list for an assessment and (b) waiting for a diagnosis for (i) attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and (ii) Autism spectrum disorder on 1 September 2023.

Maria Caulfield: Data on the number of children on a waiting list for an assessment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessments and waiting for a diagnosis is not held centrally but may be held locally by individual National Health Service trusts. The Department is investigating options for improving data collection and reporting on waiting times for ADHD assessments and diagnoses, to help improve access to ADHD assessments in a timely way and in line with the NICE guideline on ADHD.With respect to autism, NHS England publishes data on how many people are waiting for an autism diagnosis and for how long, which provides useful information nationally and locally to support local areas to improve their performance and to reduce assessment and diagnosis waiting times.The statistics published on 8 June 2023 provide data up to 31 March 2023. Of the total 157,579 patients with an open referral for suspected autism (diagnosis not yet complete) in March 2023, 92,622 were aged zero to 17 years. 6,940 of this age group with an open referral received a first contact appointment within 13 weeks. Data on children and young people in this dataset is expected to be an underestimate. The next data release will be published on 14 September.The current reported autism data comes from the Mental Health Services Data Set (MHSDS) only. Several providers of MHSDS data were affected by a cyber incident which impacted the data for August 2022 onwards. Data presented for August 2022 onwards are imputed estimates based on data from providers not impacted by the cyber incident. The trends and activity reported by these providers are, for the most part, reflective of the providers who were impacted by the cyber incident. However, caution should be used when interpreting these statistics.

Mental Health Services

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what percentage of people using community mental health services are receiving psychological therapy.

Maria Caulfield: Information derived from the mental health services dataset shows that 9.9 per cent. of people referred to community mental health services with a contact in the period from August 2021 to July 2022 were referred to psychological therapy with a contact in the same period. In some cases, the same person may have had more than one referral within this period.

Prescriptions: Fees and Charges

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the potential cost to the public purse of the overall (a) administrative and (b) enforcement costs of (i) charging for prescriptions and (ii) the Prescription Penalty Charge in England; and if he will make a statement.

Will Quince: We have made no such estimate. The NHS Business Services Authority is responsible for administering prescription services including charging, exemptions, and Penalty Charge Notices. The Department understands that prescription charge revenue offsets the costs of administering and enforcing the system.

Mental Health Services: Staff

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure NHS mental health workforce staff pay keeps pace with other sectors.

Will Quince: The National Health Service mental health workforce is made up of various professions. Staff on the national Agenda for Change contract, including nurses, midwives, and admin and clerical staff, are job evaluated. The Job Evaluation Scheme compares job demands and seeks to ensure that staff receive equal pay for work of equal value.For medical staff, including doctors, there are separate national pay scales for basic pay which apply to each NHS medical workforce. However, the terms and conditions of service for each medical staff group do recognise and make provisions for the unsocial nature of work done in premium time, namely evenings, nights, and weekends, and this can lead to differences in pay by specialty due to different working patterns.

Nurses: Training

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what training the NHS provides to nursing staff on (a) accountability and (b) reporting (i) suspicious activities and (ii) concerns.

Will Quince: All registered nurses must uphold the Code of Practice set by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). The NMC can act if those on their register fail to uphold the Code.   All National Health Service organisations and others providing NHS healthcare services in primary and secondary care in England are required to adopt the national Freedom to Speak Up policy as a minimum standard to help normalise speaking up for the benefit of patients and workers, including nursing staff. Its aim is to ensure all matters raised are captured and considered appropriately and the policy should be clear and regularly communicated to support learning and improvement. It is the individual employer’s responsibility to ensure that all mandatory training is completed by employees.

Hospitals: Pseudomonas

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the number of people who have contracted Pseudomonas whilst staying in hospital in each of the last 10 years for which data is available.

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to prevent outbreaks of pseudomonas in hospitals; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Caulfield: The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) advises in preventing outbreak of infections such as pseudomonas in hospitals to the Department, National Health Service national, regional, and local teams, including commissioners and providers. This is done through collecting and publishing data and supporting in development and updating of Infection Prevention Control (IPC) guidance, as well as providing independent IPC, decontamination, and epidemiology expertise. This also includes provision of subject matter and health protection experts such as Consultants in Public Health Medicine who can assist healthcare providers in the control of protracted and difficult outbreaks and can offer peer support visits, and specialist and reference microbiology services accessible to all healthcare providers in the United Kingdom.UKHSA runs surveillance of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bloodstream infections and publishes case numbers by trust and onset setting, monthly, quarterly, and annually. UKHSA also produces a quarterly epidemiological commentary which presents trends in Gram-negative bacteraemia (including P. aeruginosa) over time.UKHSA publishes data on Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteraemia on a monthly, quarterly, and annual basis. This includes epidemiological commentaries, which explain the data and put the results in context. Further information is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/mrsa-mssa-and-e-coli-bacteraemia-and-c-difficile-infection-annual-epidemiological-commentary/annual-epidemiological-commentary-gram-negative-mrsa-mssa-bacteraemia-and-c-difficile-infections-up-to-and-including-financial-year-2021-to-2022 The following table shows the number of hospital onset cases of P. aeruginosa since mandatory surveillance began in 2017/18.Financial yearAll reported casesHospital onset cases2017/20184,3081,6262018/20194,1861,5182019/20204,3451,5812020/20214,2911,6702021/20224,3341,626

Health Professions: Mental Health

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made a recent assessment of the potential merits of introducing mandatory psychological assessments for medical staff working in (a) high-stress and (b) sensitive NHS departments.

Will Quince: No specific assessment has been made. All National Health Service employers have a duty to ensure the health, safety and well-being of all their workforce.At a national level, NHS England has developed a range of health and wellbeing initiatives to promote staff wellbeing. This includes a wellbeing guardian role to scrutinise local support, a focus on healthy working environments, tools, and guidance for line managers to support them to hold meaningful conversations with staff to discuss their wellbeing, and a comprehensive emotional and psychological health and wellbeing support package.NHS doctors can access NHS Practitioner Health, a national support service for staff with more complex mental health needs brought about by serious issues such as trauma or addiction.The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan published on 30 June 2023 sets out how we will improve culture, leadership, wellbeing, and staff retention over the next 15 years. The plan focuses on implementing actions from the NHS People Plan, improving flexible working opportunities and supporting the health and wellbeing of the NHS workforce.

Mental Health Services: Coronavirus

Helen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the impact of the covid-19 pandemic on (a) waiting times for mental health care services and (b) the quality of mental health care provision in each of the last three years.

Maria Caulfield: We have made no specific assessments. The COVID-19 pandemic inevitably caused service disruption and increased pressure on mental health services contributing to rising need, demand and complexity of presentations.Despite these significant challenges, mental health services in the National Health Service have continued to deliver progress against some of the key ambitions in the NHS Long Term Plan throughout this period. This includes meeting the early intervention in psychosis waiting time standard, delivering the commitment for mental health support teams to cover 20-25% of pupils in schools and colleges in England a year ahead of schedule and the roll out of 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, urgent mental health helplines nationwide when the pandemic hit.

Health Professions: Conduct

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what measures are in place to monitor medical staff who have been moved to administrative roles after concerns about them have been raised.

Will Quince: Doctors employed by trusts about whom a concern has been raised should be managed in accordance with the framework ‘Maintaining High Professional Standards in the Modern NHS’. This guidance provides for consideration to be given to whether a doctor should be allowed to work in a limited capacity or a non-clinical role whilst an investigation is carried out rather than being excluded from the workplace. Supervision and monitoring of the doctor during this period is agreed locally in accordance with the employer’s assessment of the level of risk. General practitioners (GPs) on the Performers List in England who have a concern raised about them are managed under the National Health Service (Performers Lists) (England) Regulations 2013, as amended. These regulations provide that a GP can have either conditions placed on their practice, they can be suspended pending further investigation or they can be removed from the list completely. The imposition of conditions and suspension requires ongoing monitoring by NHS Regional Professional Standards teams but NHS England would not capture whether the GP concerned has moved to an administrative role.

Care Quality Commission: Technology

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many times officials in his Department have met representatives of the Care Quality Commission to discuss the rollout of the new regulatory platform in the last two months.

Maria Caulfield: Officials in the Department hold regular governance and accountability meetings with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), during which the CQC provides progress reports on various aspects of its work, including the new regulatory platform. There were no such meetings scheduled in the last two months.

Allergies: Health Services

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merit of each Intrgetated Care System having a (a) specialist allergy nurse and (b) specialist dietician.

Will Quince: No assessment has been made. Most services for people living with allergies are commissioned locally through integrated care boards, which are best placed to commission services according to local need.

Care Quality Commission: Technology

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the progress of the rollout of the new regulatory platform at the Care Quality Commission.

Maria Caulfield: No recent assessment has been made. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) plans to introduce the new regulatory platform this Autumn following engagement with CQC-registered providers, the public, system partners, CQC staff and other key stakeholders.

Maternity Services

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the quality of service in maternity units in England.

Maria Caulfield: Over the last year, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has been carrying out a national programme of focused maternity inspections. The programme involves inspecting of all hospital maternity services CQC has not inspected and rated since April 2021. The programme is in progress, and as of August 2023, CQC has completed 68% of its proposed inspections and hopes to complete all inspections by the end of the year.

Health Services: Women

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funding his Department is providing for implementation of the Women's Health Strategy for England.

Maria Caulfield: The Government is investing an additional £3.3 billion in 2023/24 and 2024/25 to support the National Health Service in England and increase capacity.In addition, this spring we announced an additional £25 million investment over the next two years to accelerate the development of women’s health hubs, so that women across England can get better access to care for essential services such as menstrual problems, contraception, and menopause.Between April 2022 and July 2023, we invested £53 million into National Institute for Health and Care Research programmes to support women’s health, including on male violence against women and girls and on testosterone as a treatment for menopause symptoms.

Menopause: Employment

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he has met the Menopause Employment Champion in the period since her appointment.

Maria Caulfield: Ministerial meetings are published on GOV.UK at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministerial-gifts-hospitality-overseas-travel-and-meetings

Women's Health Ambassador

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he has met the Women’s Health Ambassador in the period since June 2022.

Maria Caulfield: Ministerial meetings are published on GOV.UK at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministerial-gifts-hospitality-overseas-travel-and-meetings

Babies: Blood Tests

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made a comparative assessment of the number of conditions screened under the NHS bloodspot programme with similar programmes in other European countries.

Will Quince: The UK National Screening Committee recently published a paper comparing the United Kingdom with other European countries, which is available at the following link:https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanepe/article/PIIS2666-7762(23)00133-3/fulltextThe paper will hopefully improve understanding of the way in which screening principles are developed and applied in new-born blood spot screening settings across the continent.

Spinal Muscular Atrophy: Screening

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing newborn screening for spinal muscular atrophy on the priorities of the UK Rare Disease Framework.

Will Quince: The Rare Diseases Framework is a high-level document containing overarching priorities and underpinning themes for rare disease policy up to 2025. The Framework is not focused on specific diseases but aims to improve the lives of all people living with rare conditions. As such, no assessment has been made.In June 2023, the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) recommended that a modelling study be carried out alongside an in-service evaluation of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) screening in the National Health Service in the United Kingdom. This important work will give the UK NSC the evidence it needs to assess how newborn screening for SMA might work safely in the UK.

Migraines: Diagnosis

Dame Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the time taken to diagnose migraines.

Will Quince: To reduce the time taken to diagnose conditions such as migraines, NHS England has published a delivery plan for recovering access to primary care. As part of this plan, the National Health Service will deliver on the commitment of 26,000 more direct patient care staff and 50 million more appointments in general practice by March 2024.NHS England’s national programme of neurology service improvement is led by the National Neuro Advisory Group (NNAG), which convenes public bodies, expert bodies, clinicians, academics, and patient voice organisations. NNAG is not a decision-making body, but it does make formal recommendations to NHS England about how neurology services should be commissioned and improved.One of the bodies that advises the NNAG is the NHS Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) programme for neurology. In September 2021, GIRFT published its National Specialty Report for Neurology, which describes the delivery of neurology services in England and makes recommendations for their improvement. The report is available at the following link:https://gettingitrightfirsttime.co.uk/medical_specialties/neurology/

Mental Health Services: Greater London

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of trends in the average waiting time for mental health services in (a) Enfield North constituency, (b) the London Borough of Enfield and (c) London.

Maria Caulfield: The Department has made no such assessment. NHS England is working to model the implications of introducing new access and waiting time standards, including understanding data reporting and workforce requirements, to improve waiting times at both local and national level.

Strokes: Medical Treatments

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve access to treatment for people who have had a stroke.

Will Quince: The National Stroke Service Model, published by NHS England in May 2021, articulates optimal evidenced-based stroke care. Patients are expected to be seen by a stroke specialist clinician within 60 minutes of arrival and have their treatment plan determined.From 1 April 2021, 20 Integrated Stroke Delivery Networks (ISDNs) were established giving full coverage across England. ISDNs include all key stakeholders across the system including providers, commissioners, clinicians and patient representative across the whole stroke pathway.ISDNs are responsible for delivering optimal stroke pathways, based on best evidence, which ensures that more people who experience a stroke receive high-quality specialist care, from pre-hospital, through to rehabilitation and life after stroke.

Gene Therapies

Chris Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 11 July 2023 to Question 192548 on Gene Therapies, how many of the advanced therapeutic medicinal products evaluated by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence that have been recommended for use were gene therapies appraised through the Single Technology Appraisal pathway.

Will Quince: As of 5 September 2023, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has made positive recommendations on eight out of the nine gene therapy medicinal products it has evaluated using its single technology appraisal process.

Hospitals: Inspections

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of unannounced hospital inspections by the Care Quality Commission.

Maria Caulfield: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) carries out a range of inspections in National Health Service trusts, ranging from full comprehensive inspections to more targeted inspections of specific concerns or services. A comprehensive inspection is when CQC inspects all core services followed by an inspection of how well-led a provider is. Due to its size, the visit is announced, and will usually last between one and four days.A comprehensive inspection is then followed up with an unannounced visit(s). This may be during the day or out of normal working hours and will often involve a smaller inspection team. The inspection team may re-visit areas CQC has already inspected. As with other inspections, at the start of the visit, the team will meet with the provider’s senior operations lead on duty at the time and CQC will feed back if there are any immediate safety concerns.Other inspections include an unannounced focused inspection when CQC needs to respond to information about a specific concern or to follow up on the findings of a previous inspection. Focused inspections may also happen when CQC has taken enforcement action. Over 80% of hospital inspections are unannounced. Unannounced inspections allow the inspection team to observe the service and receive feedback from patients and staff on normal day of business. The inspection team would usually also include an out of hours inspection element where appropriate.

Care Quality Commission: Staff

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many and what proportion of (a) board members and (b) employees of the Care Quality Commission have previous experience in the sectors that they regulate.

Maria Caulfield: There are currently 11 members of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) Board, of whom eight are non-executive members appointed by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and three are executive members appointed by the non-executive members.Of those 11 members, all but two have experience in the sectors that CQC regulates. Details of board members’ experience can be found on CQC’s website, which is available at the following link:https://www.cqc.org.uk/about-us/our-boardCQC does not hold data centrally to give the number and proportion of employees with previous experience in the sectors they regulate.

Dental Services: Greater Manchester

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time was for braces to be fitted by an NHS dentist in (a) Stockport and (b) Greater Manchester in the latest period for which data is available.

Neil O'Brien: The information requested is not held centrally.

Health Services: Homelessness

Paula Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to require all integrated care boards to make reference to (a) homelessness and (b) rough sleeping populations in their local health strategies.

Neil O'Brien: The Health and Care Act 2022 promotes local area autonomy to allow local areas to develop their own priorities to meet their local area needs. The Secretary of State would like local areas to assess their own needs and make policies that work best for their local population.To support local areas, NHS England has published guidance on the development of Joint Forward Plans and the Department has published guidance on the development of integrated care strategies. Both reference inclusion health groups, which includes people experiencing homelessness and rough sleeping.

NHS: Dental Services

Matt Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to work with dental practices to help ensure an adequate supply of NHS appointments.

Neil O'Brien: In July 2022, we announced a package of dental system improvements having fully engaged with the profession and patient representatives. These initial changes were aimed at improving information for patients; improving incentives in the contract to deliver more complex care; and enabling the National Health Service to better work with the sector to ensure that dental care is delivered. The first of these changes came into force in late 2022.The latest NHS Dental Statistics for England show that NHS dental activity as measured by Courses of Treatments delivered increased by 23% between 2021/22 and 2022/23.We have also announced significant reforms as part of our NHS Long-Term Workforce Plan, including a 40% increase in dentistry training places, and are consulting on proposals to enable dental therapists and hygienists to deliver more treatments.But we acknowledge more needs to be done and we are working on our dental plan, which will be published shortly and will include further measures to improve access.

Pharmacy: Vaccination

Elliot Colburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the role of pharmacists in increasing access to routine vaccinations.

Neil O'Brien: The Department continues to work with NHS England and UK Health Security Agency to explore ways to increase uptake of the national immunisation programmes, including how pharmacies can contribute further to vaccination delivery, alongside other providers.

Food: Greater London

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many (a) cautions were issued and (b)(i) prosecutions  and (ii) other legal actions were taken by the Food Standards Agency against food producers in (i) Enfield North constituency, (ii) the London Borough of Enfield and (iii) London in each of the last five years.

Neil O'Brien: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) undertakes enforcement of food hygiene, food safety and animal welfare legislation at approved food establishments, primarily slaughterhouses and meat cutting plants. Enforcement outside of approved premises is generally undertaken by local authority officers.The FSA did not issue any cautions in the last five years.The number of prosecutions taken by the FSA against food producers in Enfield North constituency, the London Borough of Enfield and London in each of the five years since 1 September 2018 is shown in the following table:YearNumber of prosecutions in Enfield NorthNumber of prosecutions in London Borough of EnfieldNumber of prosecutions in London2018/19 (from 1 September 2018)0012019/200012020/210002021/221222022/230002023/24 (to 31 August 2023)000 The following table shows figures for other legal actions taken by the FSA against food producers, detailing the number of statutory notices issued by the FSA in the period from 1 September 2018 to 31 August 2023: YearNotices IssuedNumber of notices in Enfield NorthNumber of notices in London Borough of EnfieldNumber of notices in London2018/19 (from 1 September 2018)Animal Welfare Remedial Action Hygiene Improvement Detention / Seizure0 1 0 00 5 1 00 13 14 02019/20Animal Welfare Remedial Action Hygiene Improvement Detention / Seizure0 0 0 00 10 1 02 30 7 12020/21Animal Welfare Remedial Action Hygiene Improvement Detention / Seizure0 0 0 00 1 0 01 10 5 22021/22Animal Welfare Remedial Action Hygiene Improvement Detention / Seizure0 2 0 00 2 1 01 5 2 22022/23Animal Welfare Remedial Action Hygiene Improvement Detention / Seizure0 1 2 00 1 2 00 1 2 22023/24 (to 31 August 2023)Animal Welfare Remedial Action Hygiene Improvement Detention / Seizure0 0 0 00 0 0 00 0 0 0

Smoking

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of making the inclusion of advice on (a) how to quit smoking and (b) different methods of quitting smoking mandatory for all tobacco and nicotine-containing products.

Neil O'Brien: The Department provides a range of advice and support to help people quit smoking through campaigns such as Stoptober and information on the Better Health website, alongside our funding to local stop smoking services.To help even more smokers quit, on 14 August 2023 the Department launched a public consultation across the United Kingdom on mandating quit information messages inside tobacco packs.The accompanying draft impact assessment states that introducing pack inserts into all tobacco products in the UK could lead to an additional 30,000 smokers giving up their habit, delivering health benefits worth £1.6 billion.The consultation and draft impact assessment are available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/mandating-quit-information-messages-inside-tobacco-packs/mandating-quit-information-messages-inside-tobacco-packs-consultation

Smoking: Health Services

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of using digital technology to support access to stop smoking services.

Neil O'Brien: There is some evidence that digital health interventions can help people to stop smoking.The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published guidelines in October 2020 recommending that digital interventions can be used as an option to support existing stop smoking services. Further details are available at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng183/chapter/Recommendations#smoking

Smoking: Health Services

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to (a) support access to and (b) provide funding for stop smoking services.

Neil O'Brien: Adult smoking rates are at their lowest level in England at 12.7%. The public health grant continues to support local authorities to provide a range of public health services, including stop smoking services. Latest figures from 2021/22 show that we provided £68 million to local authority led Stop Smoking Services, with further reported spend of just under £12 million on wider tobacco control.We continue to roll out the NHS Long Term Plan commitments for delivery of National Health Service tobacco dependence treatment services for those admitted to hospital and pregnant smokers. The NHS allocated £35 million spend over 2022/23 and will do so again this year.To meet our ambition to be Smokefree by 2030, on 11 April 2023 the Government announced a range of new measures to help people quit smoking. This included a national Swap to Stop scheme to deliver one million vapes to help smokers quit, and a financial incentive scheme to support pregnant smokers to quit smoking.

General Practitioners: Sick Leave

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, What steps his Department plans to take to help ensure GPs can return to work after periods of ill health.

Neil O'Brien: NHS England has made available retention schemes to boost the general practitioner (GP) workforce, including the GP Return to Practice programme. This scheme provides a safe, supported pathway for qualified GPs who have previously been on the General Medical Council GP Register and NHS England’s Medical Performers List to return to National Health Service General Practice after an absence of more than two years. It has been developed together with Health Education England, and in partnership with the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) and British Medical Association to ensure the best practical and financial support for GPs.A national support team means each GP has access to a dedicated account manager and contact point to support them through the entire process. This includes advice on completing forms and paperwork, and assistance with arranging occupational health assessments.In 2020, NHS England, in collaboration with the RCGP, launched the “#LookingAfterYouToo: and the #LookingAfterYourTeam coaching support services. These services provide access to mental health services to all primary care workers, managers and leaders employed or contracted to deliver work on behalf of the NHS.This is available in addition to the NHS Practitioner Health, a service for doctors and dentists across England with mental illness and addiction problems, who are working or looking to return to clinical practice.

General Practitioners: Sick Leave

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of GPs not in post due to ill health as of 21 August 2023.

Neil O'Brien: The Department does not hold the data requested.

Primary Health Care: Disadvantaged

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of Deep End GP groupings; and how much from the public purse NHS England has spent on Deep End GP groupings in the last 12 months.

Neil O'Brien: The Department has no plans to make such an assessment. Practices can choose to organise themselves in different ways to deliver primary care medical services, and commissioners can choose to commission these providers in different ways to meet the specific needs of their populations and address health inequalities. The information on NHS England expenditure on Deep End GP groupings is not held centrally.

Dental Services

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when his Department plans to publish the Dental Recovery Plan.

Neil O'Brien: We are currently working on a plan for dentistry, to be published shortly, to improve access to dental care across England. There are several fronts where we need to take further action to support and recover activity in National Health Service dentistry, to improve access to care for all ages.Our plan for dentistry will build upon the first package of reforms agreed in July 2022, which included changes to banding and the introduction of a minimum Units of Dental Activity value. Our plan will include addressing how we continue to improve access, particularly for new patients; and how we make NHS work more attractive to ensure NHS dentists are incentivised to deliver more NHS care.

Smoking

Mark Pawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Written Statement of 11 April 2023, HCWS710, on Achieving Smokefree 2030: cutting smoking and stopping kids vaping, when his Department plans to create the illicit vapes enforcement squad.

Neil O'Brien: The new illicit vapes enforcement unit, led by National Trading Standards, is now operational. The two-year, £3 million funded project commenced work in early summer 2023. National Trading Standards is gathering data and intelligence, training staff, and bolstering capacity, and will begin field work operations in the coming weeks.

Electronic Cigarettes: Fines

Mark Pawsey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the £10,000 penalties for the sale of illicit tobacco products to illicit e-cigarettes.

Neil O'Brien: The current Track and Trace system only covers illicit tobacco. However, we are currently exploring a range of new measures to tackle illicit vapes as part of response to youth vaping call for evidence. We will publish our response to this shortly.

Electronic Cigarettes: Costs

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to estimate the long-term cost to the NHS of vaping.

Neil O'Brien: We have no current plans to make a long-term estimate. Evidence shows that whilst not risk-free, vaping is substantially less harmful than smoking. It is estimated that smoking costs the National Health Service £2.4 billion a year. Helping smokers quit smoking including using tools such as vaping is likely to save the NHS financial costs from the smoking burden.

Electronic Cigarettes: Health Hazards

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential long-term effects of vaping on the health of people (a) under and (b) over the age of 18 in (i) Wirral and (ii) England.

Neil O'Brien: The Department has not made a specific assessment of this in the Wirral and England. However, in general the Department’s assessment of the safety of vaping is based upon a series of independent evidence reviews commissioned over the past several years. The most recent and final in the series, the 2022 Nicotine Vaping in England report, was published in September 2022.The latest report focuses predominantly on the potential health risks of vaping, and concludes that in the short and medium term, vaping poses a small fraction of the risks of smoking, but that vaping is not risk-free, particularly for people who have never smoked.The Government only recommends regulated vaping products to help adult smokers to quit smoking and vapes should not be used by people under 18 or people who have never smoked.

Electronic Cigarettes

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate he has made of the number of people (a) under and (b) over the age of 18 who vape in (i) Wirral and (ii) England.

Neil O'Brien: Data is not available at local authority level, including in Wirral. However, data on vaping is available at England level for adults and children.The NHS Smoking, Drinking and Drug use among Young People in England publication shows current vaping prevalence among those aged 11 to 15 was 9% in 2021.Data from the Office for National Statistics Adult smoking habits in the UK publication shows that in 2022 there were an estimated 3.8 million vapers over the age of 16.

Dental Services: Children

Sir Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that all children can (a) be registered with an NHS dentist and (b) receive regular check-ups at a dental practice.

Neil O'Brien: Patients in England are not registered with a National Health Service dental practice, although many of these practices do tend to see patients regularly. NHS dental practices are contracted to deliver activity and to deliver a course of treatment to an individual irrelevant of where they live, rather than to provide ongoing regular care. This means that there is no geographical restriction on which practice a patient may attend, allowing patients the choice of where they would like to receive a course of treatment.The Department announced a package of improvements to the NHS dental system in July 2022 and detailed in ‘Our plan for patients’. These changes make it a legal requirement for dentists to update their information on the NHS website to improve information available to patients. The regulations came into effect in November 2022.The latest NHS Dental Statistics for England show that 6.4 million children were seen by an NHS dentist in the 12 months up to 30 June 2023, an increase of 800,000 or 14% when compared to the previous year.Dental practices are also being supported to adhere more closely to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance on recall intervals which indicate that a healthy adult with good oral health need only see a dentist every two years and a child every year.In circumstances where parents are unable to access an urgent dental appointment for their child directly through a NHS dental practice, they should contact NHS 111 for assistance.

NHS 111: Dental Services

Sir Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what data his Department holds on the number and proportion of individuals contacting the NHS 111 helpline (a) for medical advice on dental health and (b) to request dental treatment.

Neil O'Brien: NHS England publishes the Integrated Urgent Care Aggregate Data Collection monthly which is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/iucadc-new-from-april-2021/This includes data on the number of callers to NHS 111 who were recommended to contact or speak to a dental practitioner. In June 2023, the latest data available, 85,593 callers to 111, 6.6% of all callers, were recommended to contact or speak to a dental practitioner.

Dental Services: Care Homes

Sir Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of dental treatment provided to patients requiring treatment within a (a) care home and (b) similar care setting.

Neil O'Brien: Specialised dental services are in place to provide dental treatment in several settings including care homes. The frequency of dental checks will be determined by dentists on an individual basis.NHS England is responsible for commissioning primary care dental services, including domiciliary care. Many of the dentistry commissioning functions undertaken by NHS England transferred to integrated care boards (ICBs) in April 2023. ICBs are responsible for meeting the needs of their local population by working with patient groups. Domiciliary care may be delivered by any dentist holding a contract to deliver general dental services or it may be specifically commissioned locally as an additional service. NHS England is working very closely with stakeholders, inclusive of the Care Quality Commission and Healthwatch England, to ensure that patients receive the appropriate care within the appropriate setting.

Food: Microplastics

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the prominence of microplastic contaminants in (a) foodstuffs and (b) beverages consumed within the UK.

Neil O'Brien: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) is monitoring and assessing emerging information concerning microplastics in food and beverages. Based on current information, the FSA considers it is unlikely that the presence of these particles in food or drink would cause harm to consumers; however, this will be kept under review as new evidence becomes available.

Stem Cells: Donors

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to (a) encourage more people aged 16-30 to join the stem cell register and (b) raise awareness of the need for stem cell donors from BAME communities.

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that adequate numbers of high-quality donors are available for patients requiring a stem cell transplant.

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department has made on increasing (a) the number of people on and (b) the quality of the stem cell register; and if he will make a statement.

Neil O'Brien: The Department’s Stem Cell Programme is providing £2.4 million of funding to Anthony Nolan and NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) for a three-year targeted stem cell donor recruitment campaign. The approach focuses on recruiting donors most likely to donate, including male donors aged 16 to 30, and ethnic minority donors to address health inequalities. The Anthony Nolan stem cell register has nearly 900,000 potential stem cell donors and Departmental funding contributed to recruitment of over 37,000 people aged 16 to 30 in 2022/23. NHSBT can recruit from registered blood donors whose tissue is typed to a very high level, using Next Generation Sequencing technology. Targeted e-mail campaigns to specific ethnic heritage groups highlight the need for more donors from these groups. NHSBT is also conducting qualitative research within specific ethnic heritage groups to identify how it can improve the recruitment of donors from these groups.

Electronic Cigarettes

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether it is his Department's policy to reduce the availability of disposable vapes.

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether it is his policy to add health warnings to disposable vapes.

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether it is his policy to restrict the advertising of disposable vaping products.

Kirsten Oswald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether it is his policy to require outlets selling vaping products to cover them up from public view.

Neil O'Brien: Nicotine vapes, including disposables, are regulated through the Tobacco and Related Product Regulations 2016. These regulations protect children through restricting the sale of vapes to only people over the age of 18, limiting nicotine content, refill bottle and tank sizes, labelling requirements and through advertising restrictions.Every nicotine vape packet contains a health warning. Vapes can also only be advertised in certain media and with certain restrictions. More information on these restrictions is available at the following link:https://www.asa.org.uk/type/non_broadcast/code_section/22.htmlWhile vaping is a preferable alternative to smoking for adults, we are concerned about the rise in youth vaping, particularly the increasing use of disposable vapes and the unknown long-term harms. Given the recent increases, the Government recently ran a call for evidence to identify opportunities to reduce the number of children accessing and using vaping products.The Government is currently considering a range of options based on the evidence provided, including potential changes to vaping policy and regulation. We intend to respond to the call for evidence in the coming weeks.

Dementia: Diagnosis

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to ensure that the Major Conditions Strategy will include a funded plan for timely diagnoses of dementia.

Helen Whately: The Major Conditions Strategy will set out a strong and coherent policy agenda with a shift to integrated, whole-person care. The Strategy will cover prevention and treatment of dementia, including diagnosis.Over the next phase of the Major Conditions Strategy, we will focus on areas where we believe we will make the greatest impact across all conditions; this focus will include embedding early diagnosis and treatment delivery in the community.The launch of the Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Mission, which aims to speed up the development of new treatments, was supported by £95 million of Government funding; £131 million committed to the next five years of the UK Dementia Research Institute; and £11 million investment into digital innovations to detect and diagnose dementia.This contributes to delivering the Government’s commitment to double funding for dementia research to £160 million a year by 2024/25. This will span all areas of research, including diagnosis and treatment of dementia, enabling the best possible care and quality of life for people with dementia.

Parkinson's Disease: Greater Manchester

Navendu Mishra: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average wait time is for patients to see a specialist related to Parkinson's disease in (a) Stockport constituency, (b) Stockport borough and (c) Greater Manchester

Helen Whately: The information requested is not held centrally.

Memory Clinics: Waiting Lists

Alison McGovern: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time is for a person to have an initial appointment at a memory clinic in each region.

Helen Whately: The information requested is not held centrally.

Mental Capacity Act 2005

Beth Winter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the letter of 14 June 2023 from the Minister of State for Social Care to the Chair of the Joint Committee on Human Rights, when he plans to publish a revised Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice.

Helen Whately: Last year, the Government ran a public consultation on an updated Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice, including the Liberty Protection Safeguards. Although the implementation of the Liberty Protection Safeguards has been delayed beyond the life of this Parliament, the Department still intends to publish a summary of the consultation responses and work with the Ministry of Justice to make further revisions to the Code, to ensure all those who work with the Act and those who are affected by it have access to accurate practical guidance. The revised Code will be published as soon as practicable and the sector will be updated further in due course.

Mental Capacity Act 2005

Beth Winter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 19 June 2023 to Question 188896 on Patients: Mental Capacity, when he plans to publish a response to his Department's consultation on Changes to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice and implementation of the Liberty Protection Safeguards.

Helen Whately: The implementation of the Liberty Protection Safeguards has been delayed beyond the life of this Parliament. However, the Department is working with the Ministry of Justice on a response to the consultation on Changes to the Mental Capacity Act 2005 Code of Practice and implementation of the Liberty Protection Safeguards to summarise the feedback received, and to outline next steps for taking recommendations forward. This will be published as soon as practicable and the sector will be updated further in due course.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Chevening Scholarships Programme

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many Chevening scholarships have been awarded to each country for awarded for the 2023-24 academic year.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: Chevening operates in over 160 countries and territories. For the 2023-24 academic year, our budget of £57.7 million Official Development Assistance (ODA), £1.6 million non-ODA funding, and additional income of around £13.2 million from tuition fee-waivers and external partners allowed us to offer 1440 awards of which 1383 were from ODA funding and 57 from non-ODA funding. Attached is a table indicating numbers from each eligible country. For countries where we offered fewer than five places we withhold the exact number as this would contravene one of the data protection principles. In this case, Sections 40(2) and 40 (3A)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act apply.ODACountryAwards made (incl. full/part partner funded awards)ODAAFGHANISTAN22ODAALBANIA11ODAALGERIA7ODAANGOLA / SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE15ODAARGENTINA15ODAARMENIA5ODAAZERBAIJAN7ODABANGLADESH21ODABELARUS7ODABELIZEFewer than 5ODABHUTAN5ODABOLIVIA6ODABOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA6ODABOTSWANA5ODABRAZIL46ODABURUNDIFewer than 5ODACAMBODIA14ODACAMEROON / CHAD / EQUATORIAL GUINEA / GABON8ODACHINA33ODACOLOMBIA14ODACONGO, The Democratic Republic Of The/Central African Republic/Republic of CongoFewer than 5ODACOSTA RICA / NICARAGUA6ODACOTE D'IVOIRE7ODACUBA8ODADJIBOUTIFewer than 5ODADOMINICAN REPUBLIC/HAITI13ODAEAST CARIBBEAN ODA (GRENADA, ST LUCIA, DOMINICA, ST VINCENT & THE GRENADINES, ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA)11ODAEAST TIMORFewer than 5ODAECUADOR6ODAEGYPT30ODAEL SALVADORFewer than 5ODAERITREAFewer than 5ODAEswatiniFewer than 5ODAETHIOPIA13ODAGAMBIA5ODAGEORGIA/South Caucasus14ODAGHANA / BENIN / TOGO /BURKINA FASO16ODAGUATEMALA / HONDURAS5ODAGUINEAFewer than 5ODAGUYANA / SURINAME5ODAINDIA38ODAINDONESIA43ODAIRAQ18ODAJAMAICA13ODAJORDAN8ODAKAZAKHSTAN9ODAKENYA33ODAKOSOVO8ODAKYRGYZ REPUBLICFewer than 5ODALAOS13ODALEBANON10ODALESOTHO6ODALIBERIAFewer than 5ODALIBYA10ODAMADAGASCAR/COMOROS8ODAMALAWI6ODAMALAYSIA41ODAMALDIVES7ODAMALIFewer than 5ODAMAURITANIA5ODAMAURITIUS7ODAMEXICO34ODAMOLDOVA6ODAMONGOLIA17ODAMONTENEGRO7ODAMOROCCO11ODAMOZAMBIQUE15ODAMYANMAR11ODANAMIBIA14ODANEPAL11ODANIGERFewer than 5ODANIGERIA39ODANORTH MACEDONIA6ODAOVERSEAS TERRITORIES12ODAPACIFIC POOL32ODAPAKISTAN (DOES NOT INCLUDE FELLOWS)46ODAPALESTINIAN TERRITORIES11ODAPANAMA5ODAPARAGUAY17ODAPERU11ODAPHILIPPINES23ODARWANDA8ODASAMOA + COOK ISLANDSFewer than 5ODASENEGAL / CAPE VERDE /GUINEA-BISSAU8ODASERBIA7ODASIERRA LEONE6ODASOMALIA17ODASOUTH AFRICA47ODASOUTH SUDAN6ODASRI LANKA10ODASUDAN14ODASYRIA15ODATAJIKISTANFewer than 5ODATANZANIA17ODATHAILAND24ODATUNISIA6ODATURKEY20ODATURKMENISTAN6ODAUGANDA21ODAUKRAINE37ODAUZBEKISTAN7ODAVENEZUELA7ODAVIETNAM23ODAYEMEN9ODAZAMBIA11ODAZIMBABWE7Non-ODAAUSTRALIAFewer than 5Non-ODABAHAMASFewer than 5Non-ODABARBADOS (+ ST KITTS AND NEVIS)Fewer than 5Non-ODABRUNEIFewer than 5Non-ODACANADAFewer than 5Non-ODACHILEFewer than 5Non-ODAHONG KONGFewer than 5Non-ODAICELANDFewer than 5Non-ODAISRAELFewer than 5Non-ODAJAPANFewer than 5Non-ODANEW ZEALANDFewer than 5Non-ODASEYCHELLESFewer than 5Non-ODASINGAPORE5Non-ODASOUTH KOREAFewer than 5Non-ODATAIWAN5Non-ODATRINIDAD AND TOBAGOFewer than 5Non-ODAURUGUAY10  1350

Development Aid: Climate Change

Mrs Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what progress the Government has made on meeting its £11.6 billion climate finance pledge by 2026; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK spent over £1.4 billion on international climate finance in 2021/22 and will publish figures for 2022/23 in due course.

Central African Republic: British Nationals Abroad

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many British nationals requested consular assistance in the Central African Republic in each of the last five years.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: There is a limited presence of British nationals in the Central African Republic, as such requests for consular assistance are rare. There were fewer than five requests for consular assistance in 2018 and 2019. There have been no requests for consular assistance since 2020. The FCDO continues to advise against all travel to the Central African Republic.

Developing Countries: Older People

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he plans to take to include older people in developing countries in his Department’s White Paper on International Development.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK will produce a White Paper in late 2023 which sets out a vision for global development that delivers on the UN Sustainable Development Goals, poverty reduction, economic growth and tackling climate change.The precise content of the White Paper will be determined by consultation across the UK government, civil society, those in the sector (and outside it) in the UK and our international partners.  The open call for evidence will close on 16 September. In parallel, UK government officials are undertaking targeted outreach to stakeholders and partners in different areas of development policy, and the FCDO global network are consulting around the world with partner organisations and countries. External engagement has involved consultations looking at inclusion as part of the White Paper development.

Burundi: Embassies

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to strengthen the UK’s diplomatic mission in Bujumbura.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The British Embassy Office in Bujumbura represents the UK Government in Burundi. It is a subordinate Post to the British High Commission in Kigali. The Ambassador to Burundi, Omar Daair, and the team cover wide range of political, development, security and economic issues of interest to the UK and Burundi.The UK is a committed partner to Burundi. Our regional aid programmes are achieving important results in Burundi's health and education sectors, and a new partnership between the Government of Burundi and Virunga Power (a company backed by British International Investment) will expand energy access to almost 70 percent of Burundi's population. The political trajectory in Burundi has improved under President Ndashimye's leadership, and we look forward to more engagement and greater development opportunities as this continues.

Debts: Somalia

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether debt relief for Somalia has been included in his Department's accounts for (a) 2023-24 and (b) future financial years.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK continues to be Somalia's debt relief champion, as part of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC). The UK provided debt relief when Somalia reached HIPC Decision Point in 2020, both bilaterally and helping to clear Somalia's arrears to the International Financial Institutions.The UK is committed to providing debt relief on our outstanding bilateral debt to Somalia when it reaches HIPC Completion Point and the relevant agreements signed. His Majesty's Government has provisioned for this. The IMF assess HIPC Completion Point to be achievable by the end of 2023.

Ethiopia: Armed Conflict

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Ethiopia on (a) protecting civilians and (b) enabling access to food and medical supplies in the Amhara region.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Red Sea and Director General for Africa and the Americas recently visited Ethiopia to meet with senior Ethiopian Ministers and civil society, where they raised the situation in Amhara with the Ethiopian government. On 11 August we coordinated a statement with the US, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, calling for escalation and protection of civilians. Almost 1.9 million people benefit from UK-supported programmes in Amhara, although currently access is limited. The UK continues to provide this support where possible.

Ethiopia: Armed Conflict

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he had made of the implications for his policies of the (a) humanitarian, (b) human rights and (c) security situation in the (i) Tigray, (ii) Amhara and (iii) Oromia regions of Ethiopia.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The humanitarian level of need across Ethiopia remains high. Last year, UK humanitarian assistance supported 950,000 with medical supplies, treatment for 80,000 malnourished children and women, and education for 10,000 boys and girls. This year Ethiopia has been designated a Focus Country in both the 2022 Human Rights and Democracy Report and the Women, Peace and Security National Action. We welcome the Ethiopian government's commitment to establish a national Transitional Justice policy and the progress on consultation to date. The Ambassador to Ethiopia recently announced funding for the African Union's monitoring, verification and compliance mechanism to support the implementation of the Pretoria peace deal.

Ethiopia: Armed Conflict

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made representations to his counterpart in Ethiopia on forming an independent investigation into the airstrike in Finote Selam on 13 August 2023.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Red Sea and Director General for Africa and the Americas recently visited Ethiopia to meet with senior Ethiopian Ministers and civil society, where they raised the situation in Amhara with the Ethiopian government. On 11 August we coordinated a statement with the US, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, calling for escalation and protection of civilians. The UK emphasises the need for a peaceful resolution through dialogue. We continue to engage with government, African Union, UN and other partners to offer support.

Tigray: Armed Conflict

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his counterpart in Ethiopia on transparent accountability for human rights violations committed during the Tigray war; and what discussions he has had with his counterparts in other countries on co-ordinating diplomatic responses to this issue.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is committed to protecting human rights in Ethiopia and across the globe. We continue to support the mandate of the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia. The UK also provides funding to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights independent monitoring of human rights in northern Ethiopian and our £4.5 million Human Rights and Peacebuilding programme (HARP) supports the capacity of the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC). We continue to emphasise the need for peaceful resolution of all conflicts in Ethiopia through inclusive, transparent dialogue.

Chevening Scholarships Programme

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many Chevening scholarships have been awarded for the 2023-24 academic year; and how many were awarded in the most recent year for which data is available.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: Chevening operates in over 160 countries and territories. For the 2023-24 academic year, our budget of £57.7 million Official Development Assistance (ODA), £1.6 million non-ODA funding, and additional income of around £13.2 million from tuition fee-waivers and external partners allowed us to offer 1440 awards of which over 1383 were from ODA funding and 57 from non-ODA funding. Of these, 1380 have so far accepted awards. This compares to 1399 who took up awards for the academic year 2022-2023.

Somalia: Debts Written Off

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether debt relief for Somalia will be counted as Official Development Assistance in (a) 2023-24 and (b) future financial years.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK continues to be Somalia's debt relief champion, as part of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC). The UK provided debt relief when Somalia reached HIPC Decision Point in 2020, both bilaterally and helping to clear arrears to the International Financial Institutions.The UK is committed to providing debt relief on our outstanding bilateral debt to Somalia when it reaches HIPC Completion Point and the relevant agreements signed. The IMF assess HIPC Completion Point to be achievable by the end of 2023.Debt relief to Somalia will be officially recorded as Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) under the OECD Development Assistance Committee's rules. His Majesty's Government has provisioned for this.

Sudan: Armed Conflict

Vicky Ford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending sanctions to the (a) subsidiaries, (b) suppliers and (c) buyers of businesses that have been sanctioned for funding of the war in Sudan.

Vicky Ford: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of imposing financial sanctions on (a) Omdurman National Bank and (b) Al-Khalij Bank in the context of their association with factions in the war in Sudan.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: In response to the ongoing conflict and deteriorating humanitarian situation in Sudan, on 12 July I announced a package of six sanctions under the UK's Sudan (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020. The UK has imposed an asset freeze on three commercial entities linked to the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and three commercial entities linked to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), as the two main parties to the conflict. These sanctions, which target entities which the SAF and RSF have used to support their war efforts, are designed to press the parties into a permanent ceasefire, allow unfettered humanitarian access and commit to a sustained and meaningful peace process.

International Finance Corporation: Livestock Industry

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with the International Finance Corporation on preventing funding for livestock projects with (a) low standards of animal welfare and (b) routine prophylactic use of antimicrobials; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: Sustainable investments in livestock are key to preventing malnutrition and reducing poverty. As a shareholder and partner to the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the UK works closely with the IFC to ensure that it complies with rigorous and internationally recognised standards. The IFC's assessments of its projects is aligned with EU requirements and standards, including on animal health protocols and the use of antibiotics in animal production. The IFC does not invest in clients that fail to achieve industry standard certification for animal welfare within 36 months. The UK will continue to monitor the implementation of these standards and engage with IFC Management on its approach to livestock production.

Sudan: Human Rights

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure reported human rights abuses during the conflict in Sudan are properly investigated.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help reported incidents of gender-based violence against women and girls in Sudan are properly investigated.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK has consistently denounced all human rights violations that have taken place since the military coup on 25 October 2021, and the escalation in incidents since 15 April 2023. The escalation of violence, killing of civilians, sexual assault of women and girls, and restrictions on humanitarian assistance must end. We continue to support the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights which is doing crucial investigations in Sudan, and our UN partners who are working with Sudan's Combating Violence Against Women's Unit. The UK is funding organisations who are working with local partners to collect, verify and preserve digital content from the conflict, including incidents of atrocities. This evidence will play a vital role in amplifying the voices of those who are being targeted and will be shared with the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the International Criminal Court to ensure the evidence is preserved and used to hold people to account. We are committed to ensuring that a spotlight remains on the current human rights violations taking place across Sudan, as shown by my statement on atrocities in Sudan on 22 August.

Sudan: Armed Conflict

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has taken recent steps to help (a) maintain the ceasefire and (b) negotiate a longer-term pause in hostilities to allow emergency supplies to reach Sudan.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to prevent (a) the escalation of conflict in Sudan and (b) the involvement of neighbouring countries.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is working with a range of partners, including from Quad (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, UK, US), African and European countries, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the African Union (AU) and the United Nations to end the hostilities in Sudan. We welcome the mediation efforts of IGAD, the AU and neighbouring countries to bring the leaders of the warring parties together and secure a permanent ceasefire. The UK's top humanitarian priority is to secure humanitarian access and operational security guarantees for humanitarian agencies. We continue to press all parties to respect their obligations under International Humanitarian Law to protect civilians, as well as to provide safe and unfettered humanitarian access to affected populations.

Sudan: British Nationals Abroad

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he is taking steps to help Sudanese nationals living in Britain to communicate with family in Sudan.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: It remains challenging for those in the UK to communicate with family who are in Sudan. Due to the intense ongoing conflict, mobile phone and internet services are currently only partially available and telecommunications networks can be disrupted without warning. For those in the UK who are worried about a British person in Sudan, they can contact the FCDO 24/7 on 020 7008 5000.

Sudan: Refugees

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what support his Department is providing to (a) Egypt and (b) Chad to help manage incoming refugees from Sudan.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is monitoring the situation in Sudan closely, including the humanitarian and security impacts of the conflict on Sudan's neighbouring countries. The UK recognises the significant pressure that the Sudan crisis is putting on neighbouring countries and commends them for the support they are providing. The UK is pursuing all diplomatic avenues, including engagement with regional counterparts, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development and the African Union, to end the violence, de-escalate tensions and mitigate the effects of the conflict on the region. On 4 May, the UK Government announced £5 million to help meet the urgent needs of people fleeing violence in Sudan, including £2.75 million to support those seeking refuge in Chad. This comprises £1.75 million for the World Food Programme to preposition food before seasonal floods, and £1 million to the Sahel Regional Fund to enable urgent protection and assistance by NGOs. The UK also provides core funding to trusted global partners, such as the UN Central Emergency Fund, which provides assistance to those in desperate need, including in Egypt.

Developing Countries: Education

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the UK's contribution to Global Education initiatives.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: Ensuring access to quality education is an FCDO priority. The UK is committed to supporting this through the global education funds. We are the largest donor to the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), pledging £430 million in 2021. We pledged £80 million to Education Cannot Wait (ECW) in February 2023. We have been at the forefront of developing the new International Finance Facility for Education. Beyond financing, we launched a global Commitment to Action on foundational learning with partners in 2022. 29 countries have signed up to date, committing to ensure basic education for all children, especially the most marginalised.

Development Aid: Genito-urinary Medicine

Ian Paisley: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 24 April 2023 to Question 181199 on Development Aid: Genito-urinary Medicine, whether his Department has considered the potential merits of monitoring the (a) level of (i) complications and (ii) mortality during (A) abortion and (B) childbirth, (b) quality of aftercare for women following (1) abortion and (2) childbirth and (c) other outcomes associated with services (x) partly and (y) wholly funded from sexual and reproductive health rights funds.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is proud to defend and promote universal and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), including safe abortion and maternal healthcare. The UK uses sexual and reproductive health funds to support services in a range of ways including technical assistance, funding drugs and supplies and delivering services directly, working through NGOs, governments and UN agencies. Examples include the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Supplies Partnership programme and the Global Financing Facility. The risk of complications without these services in place is extremely high. The UK monitors the work of our partners through annual reviews that assess progress against a set of indicators but also assess risk. Information on the monitoring of each of the UK's SRHR programmes can be found on DevTracker.

Sudan: Visas

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help people in Sudan who have been granted entry clearance to the UK but face obstacles to leaving Sudan.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK evacuation response from Sudan was open to all British nationals, and their eligible dependents who wished to leave Sudan, travelling with a British passport holder and having existing permission to come to the UK. The UK Government cannot offer advice on the safety of travelling to any departure point within Sudan and the UK's Visa Application Centre (VAC) in Khartoum remains closed until further notice. UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) are committed to doing all they can to support customers and are contacting customers, whose passports were held in the Khartoum VAC, by email to outline what options are available to them. UKVI are currently operating within their global customer services standards across all the main legal migration routes for customers who make an entry clearance application from overseas. The UK is working with our international counterparts from African, Quad (KSA, UAE, UK, US) and European countries, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the African Union and the UN, to end the violence and allow humanitarian access in Sudan.

Sudan: British Nationals Abroad

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what progress his Department has made on evacuating British nationals from Sudan.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the criteria for rescue from Sudan to include (a) (i) elderly and (ii) other immediate and dependent relatives and (b) all British residents.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK has co-ordinated the longest and largest evacuation from Sudan of any Western country and brought 2,450 people to safety. Between 25 April and 3 May, the UK supported the departure of 1,243 British Nationals (BNs) and 1,207 other nationals on 24 flights out of Sudan. The UK Government are no longer running any evacuation operations from Sudan. The British Embassy in Khartoum is temporarily closed and there are no British consular staff in Sudan. Our ability to provide consular assistance is severely limited and we cannot provide in-person support in Sudan. We advise all British nationals to refer to our Travel Advice for Sudan: this includes details about our 24/7 consular assistance helpline. Sudanese nationals who have travelled to a third country and wish to join family members in the UK will need to apply for a visa if they do not already have the right to enter the UK. Further information can be found online at GOV.UK.

Sudan: Humanitarian Aid

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to deliver humanitarian aid to Sudan.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: In May, the Minister for Development and Africa announced that the UK would provide £21.7 million in humanitarian aid for people in need in Sudan, as part of our contribution at the UN Horn of Africa pledging summit. The UK's top humanitarian priority is to secure humanitarian access and operational security guarantees for humanitarian agencies. We are in close contact, and actively working with the UN, donors and humanitarian agencies to coordinate the effective delivery of aid, and to put pressure on the parties to abide by their commitments under international humanitarian law to protect civilians. The UK is pursuing all diplomatic avenues, working with international partners, including the UN, through the Quad (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, UK and US) and the African Union-led Core Group, to secure a cessation of hostilities, ensure the protection of civilians and to grant safe humanitarian access.

Global Partnership for Education

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the announcement entitled PM calls on G7 to help educate every child in the world, published on 11 June 2021, what steps he is taking to deliver the £430 million funding pledged to the Global Partnership for Education, in the context of levels of funding delivered to date; and what steps he is taking with international partners to help deliver a fully funded Global Partnership for Education.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is a founding member and top bilateral donor to the Global Partnership for Education (GPE). GPE estimates that its support will help partner countries get 40 million more girls into school and support 17 million more girls to read in low and lower-middle income countries by 2025. In 2021, the UK co-hosted the Global Education Summit, helping to raise a historic $4 billion in donor pledges for GPE, including the UK's pledge of £430 million to GPE over 5 years. So far, the UK has disbursed £30 million in line with the FCDO Spending Review allocation.

Development Aid

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how the International Development White Paper will relate to the 2022 International Development Strategy.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The International Development White Paper will set out the UK's approach to international development up to 2030. It will build on, not replace, the 2022 International Development Strategy and the development objectives set out in the Integrated Review Refresh. The White Paper will develop an ambitious and strategic agenda that looks to galvanise global action, seed innovation and broker new partnerships and solutions to achieve global progress.

Ethiopia: Peace Negotiations

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent diplomatic steps his Department has taken to support peace and stability in Ethiopia.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK has provided significant support to promote peace and stability in Ethiopia including a package of economic stabilisation funding budgeted at more than £130 million via British International Investment. Last year the UK also provided over £77 million in humanitarian aid to Ethiopia. The UK has also resourced peacebuilding activities including for the African Union's monitoring mission for Tigray. In recent weeks senior FCDO officials including the Director General for Africa and the Americas, and the Special Envoy for the Red Sea and Horn of Africa visited Ethiopia to support diplomatic engagement including in relation to violence in Amhara.

Sahel and West Africa: Fulani

Ms Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with governments in West Africa and the Sahel on the potential impact of (a) security in their country and (b) regional security of incidents potentially involving (i) ethnic targeting of Fulani people for deportations and (ii) other forms of ethnic targeting of Fulani people.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is committed to building stability and bolstering conflict resolution across West Africa and the Sahel. We regularly raise security issues with governments in the region. For example, in July and August, the Foreign Secretary discussed insecurity with Ghanian Minister for National Security, Albert Kan-Dapaah and Nigerian National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu. I also have regular discussions with my counterparts in the region. The UK supports a number of regional programmes which are aimed at tackling the root causes of conflict, including combatting the rise of disinformation and ethnically stigmatising narratives. The Fulani community are particularly vulnerable to conflict, and we are in discussion with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) regarding the support provided to Fulani refugees.

Development Aid and Seeds

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with the World Bank on the countries it is negotiating with on (a) development policy financing and (b) seed laws.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The World Bank does not have a policy in place that restricts farmers in choosing their seeds. The Bank advocates the use of quality seeds and has helped protect farmers, local production, and food security in developing countries. An efficient national agricultural innovation system and an effective seed certification system is essential to meet the challenges agriculture faces in developing countries. The UK is supporting this longer-term goal to do both, boost food security, incomes, and climate adaptation and resilience. World Bank operations, including also development policy loans, are designed at country level, in support of government priorities and plans and in consultation with other stakeholders. The World Bank has committed to full alignment of all its sovereign lending with the Paris Agreement by 1 July 2023. We are holding the Bank to account through the Board.

Development Aid: Public Consultation

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what plans he has to consult on the International Development White Paper.

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what documents he plans to make available for people to respond to as part of the consultation on the International Development White Paper.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: It is vital that the International Development White Paper is produced in partnership with a wide range of people and organisations, as progress on international development itself can only be achieved through collaboration. We are consulting a wide range of partners, including: civil society in the UK and internationally, the private sector, academia, partner governments, multilateral and international organisations, and local communities and citizens. The FCDO launched a Call for Evidence on 28 July, inviting submissions of evidence to develop the White Paper. Anyone can respond to the Call for Evidence, closing on 16 September.

Wales Office

Wales Office: Freedom of Information

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what steps their Department is taking to improve the response time to FOI requests.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the average time taken by his Department to respond to freedom of information requests in the 2022-23 financial year.

David T C Davies: Official National Statistics on FOI performance for all UK government departments can be found on www.gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/government-foi-statistics. In 2022-23, the Wales Office answered over 90% of FOI requests within statutory deadlines. The Office continually monitors and looks for ways to improve its FOI performance.

Wales Office: Disclosure of Information

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what the average response time to subject access requests was by their Department in the latest period for which data is available; and if they will make an assessment of the adequacy of that response time.

David T C Davies: My Department has only received two subject access requests in the last five years. One request was responded to within the statutory limit. The other request was sent to my Department in error and was forwarded to the Ministry of Justice as the correct Department to provide a response.

Wales Office: Labour Turnover

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what information their Department holds on the level of staff retention; and what steps they are taking to improve staff retention.

David T C Davies: My Department monitors staff retention monthly and engages regularly with staff to create a thriving workplace, which helps improve retention. Latest information shows a retention rate of 100% for August 2023, and 98% for the quarter (April-June 2023).

Wales Office: Correspondence

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what steps they are taking to reduce backlogs of Member correspondence in their office.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what data their Department holds on the average response time to enquiries by Members; and what assessment they have made of the adequacy of that response time.

David T C Davies: The Government attaches great importance to the effective and timely handling of correspondence, particularly from Parliamentarians. As per the Cabinet Office’s Guide to Handling Correspondence on gov.uk, departments and agencies should aim to respond to correspondence within a 20-working day target deadline. With regards to the timeliness of responses to enquiries received by members, the Cabinet Office published data on this for 2022 for all government departments on gov.uk in March 2023, and will be publishing data for Q1 and Q2 2023 shortly. The 2022 data can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/data-on-responses-to-correspondence-from-mps-and-peers-2022

Investment: Wales

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether the Government plans to hold a Wales investment conference.

David T C Davies: The UK Government is committed to growing the economy of Wales, creating well-paid jobs and opportunity right across the country.The second Global Investment Summit will be hosted by the Department for Business and Trade this Autumn, showcasing Welsh businesses to investors from around the world.Day to day, the Office of the Secretary of State for Wales works closely with the Department for Business and Trade and the Office for Investment to support growth and investment. This has led to forty-seven new foreign direct investments in Wales during 2022/23, creating 3,062 new jobs (a five-year record).

Speed Limits: Wales

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether he has made an economic impact assessment of the decision of the Welsh Government to introduce 20mph speed limits.

David T C Davies: Speed limit issues were devolved to the Welsh Government in the Wales Act 2017, which amended the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984.In terms of the 20mph speed limit, it is disappointing that the Welsh Government seems to be ignoring its own impact assessments, which suggest that the damage to the Welsh economy could be as high as £4.5 billion.The UK Government does not have any current plans to change the national speed limits, or to introduce 20mph as the default speed limit for urban areas in England.

Speed Limits: Wales

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether his Department has made an assessment of the impact of introducing 20mph speed limits in Wales on the economy.

David T C Davies: My officials and I have discussions with the Welsh Government on a wide range of transport matters. Speed limit issues were devolved to Wales in the Wales Act 2017, which amended the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, and the Welsh Government has the power to change national speed limits.In terms of the 20mph speed limit, it is disappointing that the Welsh Government seems to be ignoring its own impact assessments, which suggest that the damage to the Welsh economy could be as high as £4.5 billion.Local Authorities in England have the power to set 20mph speed zones where appropriate and the UK Government has no plans to introduce default or national 20 mph speed limits in urban environments.

Wales Office: Written Questions

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what steps their Department is taking to improve response times to written parliamentary questions.

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what data their Department holds on the average response time to written parliamentary questions in the last six months; and what assessment they have made of the adequacy of that response time.

David T C Davies: The Government attaches great importance to the effective and timely handling of Written Parliamentary Questions. There are three types of Written Parliamentary Question. The Cabinet Office’s Guide to Parliamentary Work sets out the timelines departments should seek to meet.This can be found here:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1116933/2022-10-11_-_Guide_to_Parliamentary_Work___1_.pdf Departmental performance on Written Parliamentary Questions is published at the end of each session by the Procedure Committee and is therefore publicly available.You can find details of the last session's PQ performance here:https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5803/cmselect/cmproced/385/report.htmlThis year's data will be published by the Procedure Committee when the session concludes. The Wales Office make every effort to reply to Written Parliamentary Questions within original deadlines by ensuring strict internal deadlines are in place, regular guidance is issued to all staff and monthly corporate reporting.

Ministry of Defence

Office of Net Assessment and Challenge: Staff

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) civilian and (b) military staff work in his Office for New Assessment and Challenge.

Grant Shapps: The Secretary of State's Office for Net Assessment and Challenge currently has 30 staff members and aims to have 37 staff members by the end of this financial year. They are split as follows:Civilian - currently 20 staff members, with the aim to have 27 staff members by the end of this financial yearMilitary - currently 10 staff members

Ballistic Missile Defence

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to Defence’s response to a more contested and volatile world, published on 18 July 2023, CP 901, how much funding is allocated to the homeland air and missile defence programme.

James Cartlidge: The UK takes a whole-of-Government approach to combat air and missile threats, to which Defence contributes numerous capabilities. This pan-Defence, cross-Government Air and Missile Defence approach makes it challenging for the MOD to provide a specific overall cost for homeland air and missile defence. However, by way of example, the RAF is investing of over £1.2 billion in the Future Combat Air System (FCAS), that will replace the Typhoon aircraft; the Army plans to spend more than £3 billion over the next 10 years on modernising its Ground Based Air Defence (GBAD) capability; and Navy are investing in the future of the Type 45 air defence capability with Sea Viper Evolution, which is due to enter service in 2027.

F-35 Aircraft

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many flight hours each F-35 aircraft has had in each year since 2019.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many flight hours each Poseidon-8 aircraft has had in each year since 2019.

James Cartlidge: I am withholding details of flying hours flown by individual aircraft in the F-35B Lightning and Poseidon fleets as its disclosure would or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

F-35 Aircraft

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average number of monthly flight hours by F-35 aircraft was in each year since 2019.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average number of monthly flight hours by Poseidon-8 aircraft was in each year since 2019.

James Cartlidge: The average monthly flying hours for the F-35B Lightning and Poseidon fleets are given in the table below. Financial YearF-35B LightningPoseidon2019-20160302020-21140802021-222101502022-23180190Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 Poseidon entered service in late 2019 so the average figure is calculated on a partial year.

Aviation: Prime Minister

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on how many individual occasions his Department was tasked with arranging fixed wing air transport for the Prime Minister for domestic flights on the aircraft registered under the marks (a) G-ZABH and (b) G-ZAHS between the dates of 25 October 2022 and 4 September 2023.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Between 25 October 2022 and 4 September 2023, the Envoy aircraft of the Command Support Air Transport Fleet was tasked, and flew the Prime Minister, eleven times for official purposes. Each task can include a number of separate legs.Two of the taskings were completed on G-ZABH and nine on G-ZAHS.

Aviation: Prime Minister

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on how many individual occasions his Department was tasked with arranging rotary wing air transport for the Prime Minister on the aircraft registered under the marks (a) GZ100 and (b) G-MAOL between the dates of (i) 1 February 2021 to 24 October 2022 and (ii) 25 October 2022 to 4 September 2023.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Between 1 February 2021and 24 October 2022, the A109 rotary wing aircraft of the Command Support Air Transport Fleet was tasked, and flew the Prime Minister, fifteen times for official purposes.Between 25 October 2022 and 4 September 2023, it was tasked and flew the Prime Minister on nine occasions for official purposes. Each task can include a number of separate legs.

Armed Forces: Housing

Helen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much core profit has been withheld from contractors employed under Future Defence Infrastructure Services contracts.

Helen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what financial penalties have been imposed on firms employed under Future Defence Infrastructure Services contracts.

James Cartlidge: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 12 July 2023 to Question 192887 to the hon. Member for West Norfolk (James Wild).

F-35 Aircraft

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects all 48 F-35 fighter jets purchased under the Lighting Programme to enter service with the Armed Forces.

James Cartlidge: 48 F-35B Lightning aircraft are on contract, with deliveries continuing through to 2025.

Hawk Aircraft

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what guidance his Department has issued on the airworthiness of Hawk (a) T1 and (b) T2 aircraft.

James Cartlidge: In accordance with Military Aviation Authority (MAA) regulations, the Department maintains Approved Data to ensure the sustained type airworthiness of the UK Hawk aircraft. Full and mature data sets are in place for both the T1 and T2 Hawk and these are actively managed and assured to comply with the MAA requirements.

Arms Trade

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps to ban the sale of (a) munitions and (b) military equipment to countries found to use weapons against civilians.

James Cartlidge: The Government takes its strategic export control responsibilities very seriously and will not grant an export licence if to do so would be inconsistent with the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria, including respect for human rights and international humanitarian law.

Missile Defence Centre: Staff

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) military and (b) civilian personnel work at the Missile Defence Centre.

James Cartlidge: The Missile Defence Centre (MDC) is a government-industry partnership comprising civilian personnel and works closely with the military adviser community based at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and also with military requirements managers, capability sponsors, and operators across all of the Front Line Commands. The core MDC has 20 civilian personnel (a mix of MOD civil servants (including Dstl) and industry secondees) and the partnership construct enables access to approximately 150 personnel with credible and relevant expertise within Dstl, Industry, and Academia.

Military Bases: Closures

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many UK (a) airbases and (b) other defence sites used for ground based air defence tasks have been closed since 2010.

James Cartlidge: No UK airbases or other defence sites used for Ground Based Air Defence tasks have been closed since 2010.

Sky Sabre

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Defence Command Paper Refresh, published on 18 July 2023, how much his Department has invested in the Sky Sabre air defence system.

James Cartlidge: Defence has invested over £660 million in the Sky Sabre air defence system. This includes sensors, command and control software, launchers and missiles.

Ministry of Defence: Digital Technology

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps their Department is taking to improve its digital services to provide better (a) accessibility and (b) user experience for the public.

James Cartlidge: The Government's Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO) is responsible for producing the Service Standard (https://www.gov.uk/service-manual/service-standard) which guides Government teams as to how they should design and produce content providing information regarding public services.Government teams are required to make sure that all information is accessible across all channels, including online, phone, paper and face to face. Government teams must also make sure that everyone can use their services, including disabled people, people with other legally protected characteristics, people who do not have access to the internet and/or lack the skills and/or confidence to use the internet.CDDO provides clear guidance on how to make non-digital parts of a Government service as widely accessible as possible by providing a contact for users and providing forms in alternative formats for example, large print, braille or audio CD.All of the Ministry of Defence's public-facing digital services are designed in full accordance with Government Digital Service design patterns to ensure usability and accessibility. A notable example of success is our service to Apply for a Deceased Person's Military Record, which is one of HM Government's Top 75 services. This meets the "Great" service standard, including being compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 to AA standard and recently hitting a 96 per cent customer satisfaction rate.

Army: Vehicles

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the expected in service date is for the General Support Utility Platform.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the procurement cost for the General Support Utility Platform.

James Cartlidge: The General Support Utility Platform (GSUP) is a project within the British Army’s Land Mobility Pipeline (formerly Protected Mobility Pipeline) Programme, to replace the ageing in-service Land Rover Wolf and Pinzgauer fleets of vehicles. The current Out of Service Date for both platforms is 2030, with the GSUP expected to be delivered from the mid-2020s. The Army is currently determining the specific Land Fleet Requirement for the GSUP under Future Soldier. Therefore, disclosure of the provisional cost estimate at this stage could prove prejudicial to subsequent engagement with industry.

Ministry of Defence: Cybersecurity

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to (a) enhance cybersecurity and (b) protect personal data.

James Cartlidge: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) takes its cybersecurity and data protection obligations very seriously. The Cyber Resilience Strategy for Defence published in May 2022 sets out the steps that the Department is taking to enhance cyber security, thereby also protecting personal data in accordance with UK GDPR Article 5(1)f. The strategy is underpinned by four funded and dedicated defensive cyber programmes to mitigate cyber risks against our platforms, weapon systems and core digital infrastructure. The MOD uses the Information Commissioner’s Office Accountability Framework to determine, monitor and drive data protection improvement measures across the Department. These are delivered through a network of Data Protection Advisors within each main business area.

Ukraine: Defence Equipment

Dave Doogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what equipment and training his Department is providing to Ukraine to aid mine clearance.

James Heappey: The UK has provided considerable equipment and training to Ukraine to improve their ability to clear mines. This has included over 1,500 sets of both vehicle-mounted and 'on-the person' mine clearing and explosive ordnance disposal equipment, including necessary training.The UK is also currently delivering counter explosive training to Ukrainian Armed Forces personnel and training Ukrainian Navy personnel to conduct mine countermeasure activity at sea.Several mine clearance capabilities are also under consideration for inclusion in the next package of support from the International Fund for Ukraine. This package is subject to review and approval by the multinational Executive Panel which oversees the Fund.

Armed Forces: Wildlife

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Armed Forces have been requested by agencies of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to help search for animals listed under the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 in the last ten years.

James Heappey: No such requests have been made of the Ministry of Defence in the last ten years.

Cyprus: Military Exercises

Tom Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has taken recent steps to increase the number of joint training exercises between the British and Cypriot armed forces.

James Heappey: The UK Armed Forces and the Cypriot Armed Forces have a long-standing and fruitful bilateral defence relationship. The UK regularly participates in joint exercises with the Cypriot Armed Forces, including Ex APHRODITE SHIELD earlier this year and annual participation in Ex ARGONAUT, Ex NEMESIS and Ex CAMBRIAN PATROL.Our Armed Forces' participation in joint exercises with the Cypriot Armed Forces is driven through the Bilateral Defence Cooperation Programme (BDCP). First signed in 2016, and reviewed at annual Staff Talks, the implementation of the BDCP has resulted in the growth of our bilateral defence relationship with the Republic of Cyprus. We continue to explore opportunities to deepen our co-operation across the breath of defence, including through joint training exercises.

Army: Recruitment

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to Future Soldier, what the unit establishment figures for the Army are.

James Heappey: Under Future Soldier, the British Army will have an overall, regular workforce of 73,000. It will structure its units with an appropriate number of personnel to meet its operational requirements. I am however withholding the workforce requirement of each unit of the Army as its disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness, or security of the Armed Forces.

Global Response Force: Deployment

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what equipment will be available within forty-eight hours for the Global Response Force should it be stood up for engagement.

James Heappey: It is longstanding policy not to set out our readiness profiles to our adversaries. The Global Response Force will combine existing capabilities to deliver a joint force able to operate globally and in support of NATO. It will enhance integration across domains, bringing together forces from across land, sea, air, space and cyber.

Afghanistan: Refugees

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of how many Afghan (a) principals and (b) dependents potentially eligible for relocation to the UK under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy are still in Afghanistan.

James Heappey: As of 29 August 2023, there are 582 confirmed ARAP-eligible principal applicants and an estimated 1,700 of their family members in Afghanistan, at the point they last confirmed their location with the ARAP casework team. This figure fluctuates as we continue to identify eligible individuals and as we continue to support the relocation of eligible Afghans and their families out of Afghanistan and into the safety of third countries at best pace. It is not always possible to know whether all eligible personnel are still in Afghanistan. This is incumbent on these individuals informing the ARAP casework team of their location if they leave Afghanistan. Some individuals choose not to relocate to the UK.

Defence Equipment: Military Alliances

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that the UK's ground based air defence capabilities are fully interoperable with other NATO systems.

James Heappey: The UK's ground based air defence capabilities are fully interoperable with NATO air defence systems. We will continue to develop our capabilities in tandem with NATO.

Military Aircraft: Training

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average length is of a fast-jet conversion course for the (a) Tornado, (b) Typhoon and (c) F-35 aircraft.

James Heappey: The average time for completion of the Operational Conversion Course for a fresh Typhoon pilot is eight months and 12 months for a F-35B Lightning pilot. The Tornado is no longer in UK service.

NATO: Ammunition

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, further to the Answer of 22 December 2022 to Question 106328 on NATO: Ammunition, whether his Department made a decision on the potential of UK involvement in the NATO Multinational Ammunition Warehousing Initiative.

James Heappey: The UK signed up to the NATO Multinational Ammunition Warehousing Initiative (MAWI) in February 2023 alongside Canada, Czechia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden. There are now a total of 24 participating allies, plus the NATO Support and Procurement Agency.

Australia: Armed Forces and Staff

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Australian (a) military and (b) civilian Defence personnel have been stationed in the UK each year since 2010.

James Heappey: This information is not held centrally, and it has not been possible to obtain it in the time available. I will write to the right hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Defence

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Defence Command Paper Refresh, published on 18 July 2023, how his Department plans to double the effect that we seek to achieve in the world with the campaigning approach.

James Heappey: As set out in the Defence Command Paper, Defence seeks to double the effect we achieve in the world by 2030 through better leveraging our assets and experience to more effective compete and manage risk worldwide. The Department’s campaigning approach will enable the Department to utilise all levers of defence to achieve goals, including through education, exports and the deployment of our personnel and assets. Further, Defence is already reforming the way the Department works to improve productivity, including through removing organisational and bureaucratic layers and through using digital tools to enhance integration.

Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office

Deidre Brock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the budget is of the Cabinet's Domestic and Economic Affairs (Union) committee.

Alex Burghart: There is no individual budget for the Domestic and Economic Affairs (Union) committee, as it sits within the broader Cabinet Secretariat in the Cabinet Office.

Cabinet Office: Staff

Deidre Brock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many staff support the Cabinet's Domestic and Economic Affairs (Union) committee (a) full-time, (b) part-time and (c) on flexible working arrangements.

Alex Burghart: Within the Cabinet Office there are 1.5 full time equivalent members of staff who support the operation of the Domestic and Economic Affairs (Union) Committee, working with policy teams across government departments, as is typical for Cabinet committees. This reflects one full time member of staff supporting the Committee alongside other members of staff, which equates to 50% of a full time member of staff.

Government Departments: Equality

Sir Peter Bottomley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance his Department issues to Heads of Departments on meeting with the Civil Service Sex Equality and Equity Networks; and if if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Quin: The Civil Service has not developed or issued any specific guidance to Heads of Departments on their engagement with the Civil Service networks, including the Sex Equality and Equity Network. The Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2022 outlines a focus on the delivery of inclusion, to support our key priorities as outlined in the Declaration on Government Reform.

Cabinet Office: Staff

Deidre Brock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when his Department will next publish an up-to-date organogram.

Jeremy Quin: The most recent Cabinet Office organogram of staff roles and salaries for the period ending 31 March 2023 is published at: https://www.data.gov.uk/dataset/ff76be1f-4f37-4bef-beb7-32b259413be1/organogram-of-staff-roles-salaries/datafile/33e688f4-2903-44d1-817a-332b399549d6/preview#organogram

Civil Servants: Climate Change Convention

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many civil servants from all Government Departments attended the Sharm el-Sheikh Climate Change Conference in November 2022.

Jeremy Quin: This information is not centrally held in the form requested.

Civil Service: Flexible Working

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of civil service flexitime working practices on productivity levels in Whitehall.

Jeremy Quin: We have not conducted a specific central assessment as outlined by my Honourable friend, though the proper utilisation of flextime arrangements can deliver clear benefits to the taxpayer. The ability of civil servants to work flexibly, whether early in the morning, late at night or over the weekend, is a powerful tool to deliver the reliable and accessible public services we all depend on.

Cabinet Office: Remote Working

Julian Knight: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what their Departments policy is on Civil Servants in their Department working from home and receiving the London Weighting Allowance.

Jeremy Quin: The Cabinet Office does not have a London Weighting Allowance. Pay arrangements, including those for London, are delegated to each department. In the Cabinet Office, there are separate London and National pay ranges. An individual’s pay, paid as a salary, is determined by the location of their designated office, as set out in their contract. Ministers and the senior leadership in the Cabinet Office are clear civil servants should be in the office where needed to drive delivery and to adhere to contractual obligations.

Department for Business and Trade

Department for Business and Trade: Equality

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how much the Department for International Trade spent on (a) training and (b) staff supporting equality, diversity and inclusivity in (a) 2021 and (b) 2022.

Nigel Huddleston: (a) The former Department for International Trade spent a) £21,245 in the 2021-2022 financial year and b) £16,990 in the 2022-2023 financial year, on training supporting equality, diversity and inclusivity.(b) Staff whose role it was to work on equality, diversity and inclusivity cost the Department for International Trade a) £347,630 in the 2021-2022 financial year, and b) £258,479 in the 2022-2023 financial year.

Investment: Northern Ireland

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on the agenda for the Northern Ireland investment conference in September 2023.

Nigel Huddleston: The Secretary of State for Business and Trade and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland as joint hosts for the Summit invited a range of Cabinet colleagues to attend and participate in the Northern Ireland Investment Summit. As a result, we expect a strong ministerial delegation to attend.

Baby Care Units: Parental Leave and Pay

Beth Winter: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department is taking steps to encourage employers to offer (a) leave and (b) pay for neonatal care before the Neonatal Care (Leave and Pay) Act 2023 comes into force.

Kevin Hollinrake: The Government is committed to introducing Neonatal Care Leave and Pay as soon as possible. Once in place, up to 12 weeks of paid leave will be available to all eligible parents of babies who are admitted into neonatal care. The Government encourages employers to respond with compassion and understanding to any employee who is dealing with the challenge of having a child in neonatal care. It will be up to individual employers to consider whether they can offer leave or pay to their employees before the Act comes into force.

Minimum Wage: Enfield North

Feryal Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if she will make an estimate of the number of breaches of minimum wage legislation by employers in Enfield North constituency in each of the last four years.

Kevin Hollinrake: All businesses – irrespective of their size, business sector or location – are responsible for paying the correct minimum wage to their staff. National Minimum Wage enforcement data is not available at constituency level but regional data for London can be seen in the table below. Financial YearRegionArrears (£)Workers2018-19London6,456,31559,1472019-20London3,298,93542,9172020-21London1,285,69710,0052021-22London5,408,62955,133

Post Offices: Opening Hours

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what recent discussions she has had with Royal Mail on the compatibility of decreasing operating hours at customer service points with the universal service agreement.

Kevin Hollinrake: Decisions on the opening hours of Royal Mail’s customer service points are an operational matter for the business. The Government does not have a role in Royal Mail's operational or commercial decisions.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Local Government: Liability

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of a new tier of governance accountability for councils, in the context of events such as Grenfell Tower.

Lee Rowley: The governance model for a local authority in England must be either: the mayor and cabinet; the leader and cabinet; or the committee system. It is for local areas to decide on their governance. Local people can have a say on the authority's governance via a binding referendum in certain circumstances and can petition for a referendum as seen in Bristol, Croydon and Sheffield recently.Local government is independent of central Government and is accountable to its local electorate. To improve accountability and transparency and help all councils succeed we have launched the Office for Local Government (Oflog).Where there is evidence that a council is at risk of failing its best value duty, the Secretary of State may use his powers under the Local Government Act 1999 to intervene.   The independent Grenfell Recovery Taskforce (2017-2020) was appointed in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy. It supported and challenged the council and provided assurance to Government. This was a substantial non-statutory intervention; and a sign of how seriously Government regarded the situation. The Secretary of State remains committed to supporting the Grenfell community and will continue to work closely with partners including those at the council to bring about lasting change for all those affected.

Local Government: Liability

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a new duty of care and statutory obligation for people employed in a local authority to cover incidents which result in death.

Lee Rowley: Local authorities have broad independence to organise their approach in the most appropriate way to serve their local communities and it would be for them, as independent employers, to make decisions on introducing new duties of care. However, although local government is independent of central Government, where there is evidence that a council is at risk of failing its best value duty, the Secretary of State may use his powers under the Local Government Act 1999 to intervene. The independent Grenfell Recovery Taskforce (2017-2020) was appointed in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy where it supported and challenged the council and provided assurance to Government.The Secretary of State remains committed to supporting the Grenfell community and will continue to work closely with partners including those at the council to bring about lasting change for all those affected.

Local Government Finance

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding for local authorities.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the funding formula for local authorities.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent discussions he has had with local authority leaders on funding for local authorities.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of the adequacy in the size of local authority finance reserves.

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure local authorities maintain adequate finances.

Lee Rowley: I refer the Hon. Member to my answer to Question UIN 184131 on 15 May 2023 and to the Local Government Finance policy statement published 12 December 2022.On local authority reserves, the Government notes the significant increase in some local authority reserves over the two years of the pandemic. We encourage local authorities to consider how they can use their reserves to maintain services in the face of immediate inflationary pressures, taking account, of course, of the need to maintain appropriate levels of reserves to support councils’ financial sustainability and future investment.

Leasehold

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, with reference to his Department's guidance entitled Qualifying date, qualifying lease and extent, updated on 21 April 2023, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to prevent leaseholders who renew their lease after 14 February 2022 losing their statutory leaseholder protections in the Building Safety Act.

Lee Rowley: We are aware that some leaseholders protected under the statutory leaseholder protections in the Building Safety Act 2022 may no longer be protected if they have extended or varied their lease since 14 February 2022. We have previously committed to addressing this issue in primary legislation as soon as Parliamentary time allows.

Home Office

Refugees: Climate Change

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the capacity of the UK to provide refuge for the number of climate refugees that her Department estimates will arrive in the UK in each of the next five years.

Robert Jenrick: Climate change is not a criteria in the refugee convention, and therefore individuals would not be eligible for resettlement.

Asylum: Applications

Angela Crawley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 7 July 2023 to Question 191605 on Asylum: Staff, what steps her Department has taken to (a) streamline, (b) digitalise and (c) simplify the asylum processing system.

Robert Jenrick: We are accelerating decision-making and rapidly speeding up asylum processing times. We are driving productivity improvements by simplifying and modernising our system. This includes shorter, more focussed interviews; removing unnecessary interviews; making guidance simpler and more accessible; dealing with cases more swiftly where they can be certified as manifestly unfounded; targeted training; and recruiting extra decision makers.Another way in which we will achieve that is via the Streamlined Asylum Process which is centred around accelerating the processing of manifestly well-founded asylum claims. We have developed existing and new technology to help build on recent improvements such as digital interviewing and move away from a paper-based system. We are also developing digital tools to support case working, including appointment booking, case prioritisation, allocation tools and a document exchange portal.

Ibrahim Faraj

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 25 July 2023 to Question 194471 on Court Orders: Children, if she will investigate the circumstances under which Ibrahim Faraj was taken out of the UK on 12 November 2022.

Tom Tugendhat: The UK’s Joint International Crime Centre based in the National Crime Agency are working with Cheshire police following the abduction of Ibrahim Faraj from the UK last year.FCDO officials met with the family in July to discuss this case. It would be inappropriate for us to comment further. The FCDO provides consular assistance to British nationals overseas; they do not provide assistance to foreign nationals outside the UK even if they usually live in the UK.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits

Judith Cummins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) reinstating the Universal Credit uplift of £25 per week and (b) extending the uplift to cover Employment Support Allowance.

Guy Opperman: The Government has always been clear that the £20 increase was a temporary measure to support those households most economically affected by the economic shock of Covid-19. Since then, the Government has announced support to households to help with higher bills worth £94 billion across 2022-23 and 2023-24.

Universal Credit: Bexley

Sir David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people receive Universal Credit in (a) the Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency and (b) the London Borough of Bexley.

Guy Opperman: In July 2023 there were 7,346 people on Universal Credit who live in the Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency and 18,790 people on Universal Credit who live in the London Borough of Bexley. The latest available statistics on the number of people who are on Universal Credit, by various geographical breakdowns including Westminster parliamentary constituency and local authority, are published monthly on Stat-Xplore. Users can log in or access Stat-Xplore as a guest user and, if needed, can access guidance on how to extract the information required.

Child Maintenance Service: Training

Amy Callaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what training Child Maintenance Service caseworkers receive.

Mims Davies: All Child Maintenance Caseworkers receive 5 days of Child Maintenance Service (CMS) Gateway learning in the classroom, regardless of which part of the business they will be working in. This includes core digital skills, management of customers security, management of unacceptable customer behaviour and how to recognise and respond appropriately to domestic abuse. CMS colleagues then receive up to 15 days of technical learning in the classroom, dependant on the role they will undertake. This includes management of customer information and queries on the telephone, in writing and digitally. Learning is also provided to recognise, manage and signpost customers with complex needs, for example living costs or threats of suicide or self-harm. In addition, learners receive workplace support to embed learning. This is interspersed with the classroom learning and is completed by dedicated coaches who use live work to enhance the classroom theory. The ratio is 1 day classroom learning to 3 days workplace support. Both classroom learning and workplace support can be flexible and extra time or support can be provided if learners have any additional needs. Classroom learning is normally completed in a ratio of 1 learning delivery officer to 12 learners. Workplace support is a ratio of 1 workplace support coach to 6 learners. Learners also undertake the DWP Fundamental Learning Journey (FLJ) which is a standardised approach to learning that ensures you have the right level of skills and knowledge to deliver excellent service regardless of your role within DWP Service Delivery. The journey emphasises skills alongside technical knowledge required, making our service more consistent for customers. All the learning in the FLJ is expected to be completed within 26 weeks of the start date. The learning is flexible, to fit around any technical learning that is undertaken.

Department for Work and Pensions: Buildings

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he is taking steps to help (a) repair and (b) reopen the Forum Leisure Centre swimming pool located within his Department's property in Quarry Hill, Leeds.

Mims Davies: The Department for Work and Pensions are in the process of arranging a comprehensive scheme of repairs to the plant room servicing the Quarry House Leisure Centre Pool. A quote for the works has been received and validated. With lead time for materials & subsequent programme of works, it is anticipated the pool will re-open in December 2023.

Children: Maintenance

Martyn Day: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 12 December 2022 to Question 101751 on Children: Maintenance, whether his Department (a) has launched and (b) plans to launch a review into using gross income to calculate child maintenance.

Mims Davies: The Government’s response to the Independent Review of CMS’s handling of domestic abuse cases announced our intentions to look again at the child maintenance calculation to ensure it is fit for purpose and fair for both parents in light of societal changes since it was last looked at. The review is ongoing, and any changes would require changes to primary legislation and will be brought forward in the usual way. Any changes will always be made according to the best interests of children.

Local Housing Allowance: Wales

Stephen Kinnock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much local housing allowance was paid in (a) Wales, (b) Neath Port Talbot and (c) Aberavon in each of the the last five years.

Mims Davies: Local Housing Allowance expenditure data for Housing Benefit is available by Region and Local Authority, but not at Parliamentary Constituency level. 2021/22 is the latest year where Local Housing Allowance expenditure information is available. The table below shows how much local housing allowance was paid in (a) Wales and (b) Neath Port Talbot in each of the last five years.Housing Benefit Local Housing Allowance Expenditure £ million, cash2017/182018/192019/202020/212021/22Wales260.3223.8173.2150.1127.3Neath Port Talbot14.410.98.77.56.5

Support for Mortgage Interest

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Support for Mortgage Interest scheme at supporting homeowners with rising mortgage costs.

Mims Davies: SMI provides reasonable support by making a contribution towards mortgage interest to protect claimants against the threat of repossession. The rate of SMI is based on the average mortgage rate published by the Bank of England and recently increased from 2.09% to 2.65% in May 2023. Any further changes will occur when the average mortgage rate differs by 0.5 percentage points or more from the rate in payment.To support mortgage borrowers with rising interest rates, on 3 April 2023, we extended SMI by offering Universal Credit claimants a loan after three months, instead of nine and extended to in-work UC claimants.No assessment has been made of the adequacy of Support for Mortgage interest (SMI) since interest rates have risen, although the Department continues to monitor the impact of our policies on an on-going basis.

Support for Mortgage Interest

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made a comparative assessment of the effectiveness of the (a) Support for Mortgage Interest scheme and (b) pre-April 2018 scheme.

Mims Davies: We recently extended the support SMI provides by offering Universal Credit claimants a loan after three months, instead of nine, and extending to in-work UC claimants. These changes allow more UC claimants to access SMI, and therefore better protect against repossession, than when SMI was paid as a benefit.     No comparative assessment has been made. Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) transitioned from a benefit to a loan in April 2018. The support provided as a loan is calculated at the same level as it was when it was a benefit, therefore it provides the same level of protection for individuals against repossession. Loans are only repayable from any available equity when the property is sold or the claimant dies.

Disadvantaged

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an estimate of the number of people who have had difficulty affording their bills between (a) September 2022 and August 2023 and (b) September 2021 and August 2022.

Mims Davies: No such estimate has been made of the number of people who have had difficulty affording their bills between (a) September 2022 and August 2023 and (b) September 2021 and August 2022. The Government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living and is taking action to help. Overall, we are providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023-24 to help households and individuals with the rising cost of bills.

Housing Benefit

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to take steps to remove the non-dependent charge in Housing Benefit for disadvantaged groups.

Mims Davies: The general policy for non-dependant deductions is that adults (such as adult children) living in the household of people claiming Housing Benefit should contribute to the household expenses of the accommodation where they live. There are easements within the rules, which apply if the householder (or their partner) is blind, getting Attendance Allowance, the care component of Disability Living Allowance, the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment, or Armed Forces Independence Payment. In these circumstances, no non-dependant deductions would be made. This easement is designed to help sustain disabled householders in their own home rather than increase the risk of them moving into alternative accommodation, which might be more expensive and /or less appropriate for them. There are currently no plans to review the non-dependant deductions policy in Housing Benefit.

Department for Transport

Department for Transport: Freedom of Information

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the average time taken by his Department to respond to freedom of information requests in the 2022-23 financial year.

Jesse Norman: The Department does not hold statistics on the average time taken to respond to Freedom of Information (FOI) requests. Performance figures for the 2022-23 financial year are published in the Department’s annual report and accounts which show that it responded to 95% of information requests within statutory deadlines.

Department for Transport: Freedom of Information

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps their Department is taking to improve the response time to FOI requests.

Jesse Norman: The Department takes steps to promote good practice and maintain good response times through the provision of expert advice, staff training and regular performance reporting.

Transport: Carbon Emissions

Wera Hobhouse: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an estimate of the average carbon dioxide emissions per person per journey from London to Newcastle by (a) air, (b) rail, (c) lorry and (d) car.

Jesse Norman: The Department has not estimated the emissions associated with this specific journey.

Railways: Electrification

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's policy is on what proportion of the future rail network will be electrified.

Huw Merriman: Since 2010, more than 1,200 miles of the rail network in GB have been electrified. Government continues to progress the electrification of the Transpennine route between Manchester, Leeds and York, the Midland Mainline and the route between Wigan and Bolton. Electrification, alongside alternative technologies such as hydrogen, battery and bi-modes, will play an important role in meeting our Net Zero targets. We are working with the Great British Rail Transition Team to bring forward costed options to decarbonise the whole network for government to carefully consider in terms of overall deliverability and affordability.

Railways: Finance

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to publish the annual update of the Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline before the end of this session of Parliament.

Huw Merriman: Following recent fiscal events, we are in the process of reviewing the Rail Network Enhancements Pipeline (RNEP) and will look to make the outcome public once that work is complete.

British Transport Police: Detection Rates

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the British Transport Police Authority publication entitled British Transport Police Fund Annual Report and Accounts for the year ending 31 March 2023, page 16, published on 14 August 2023, what were the equivalent figures for the crimes in reference 3 for financial years (a) 2018-19, (b) 2019-20 and (c) 2020-21.

Huw Merriman: The crime types include Sexual Offences, Violence Against Women and Girls and Sexual Harassment. However, please note that Sexual Harassment figures were not recorded by British Transport Police until 2021/22. Sexual Offences2018-20192,6122019-20202,4192020-20211,021 Violence Against Women and Girls 2018-20198,9142019-20208,8312020-20214,314

British Transport Police: Detection Rates

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the British Transport Police Authority publication entitled British Transport Police Fund Annual Report and Accounts for the year ending 31 March 2023, page 16, published on 14 August 2023, whether the reported figures for (a) sexual offences and (b) crimes involving harassment exclusively relate to crimes against women and girls.

Huw Merriman: The reported figures for (a) sexual offences and (b) crimes involving harassment do not exclusively relate to crimes against women and girls although the majority of both offences are against females.

Railways: Bexleyheath and Crayford

Sir David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of closing train station ticket offices on passengers in Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency.

Huw Merriman: We are now in a period where the independent passenger bodies (Transport Focus and London TravelWatch) are engaging with train operators on the basis of the consultation responses they have received and the criteria they have set out. We expect train operators to work collaboratively with the passenger bodies in the coming weeks, to listen to the concerns raised and to refine their proposals accordingly. When proposing major changes to ticket office opening hours, including closures, operators were required to take into account the adequacy of the proposed alternatives in relation to the needs of all passengers; and to include this in the notice of the proposal sent to other operators and passenger groups. All operators prepared Equality Impact Assessments and published these on their websites. Together with the industry, we want to improve and modernise the passenger experience by moving staff out from ticket offices to provide more help and advice in customer focused roles. No currently staffed station should be unstaffed as a result of industry changes. We expect train operators, including Southeastern who manage several stations in the Bexleyheath and Crayford area, to ensure staff are well located to meet passenger needs in future.

Railways: Crew

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the (a) frequency and (b) scope of psychological fitness examinations of train drivers.

Huw Merriman: The department recently published a statutory post implementation review of the Train Driver Licensing and Certificates Regulations 2010 (TDLCR) on 19th May 2023, which contains the requirements for becoming a train driver in Great Britain. The purpose of the review was to assess whether the regime was meeting its original objectives and whether it remains fit for purpose.Since publication, my officials have started the process of exploring options for potential reform to address the findings of the review, and will engage industry to develop and consult on these proposals in due course. This will include reviewing the frequency and scope of psychological fitness examinations of train drivers, among other areas, to ensure they are adequate.

Railways: Safety

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many safety critical job roles on the rail network were unfilled in July 2023.

Huw Merriman: Across the rail industry there are a variety of roles where people have safety duties and responsibilities within their job remit, which are discharged in accordance with health and safety law.However, definitions of what constitutes a ‘safety critical role’ vary across the rail industry, so it is not possible to provide a definitive answer to this question.

Railways: Safety

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of systems to quickly alert train drivers and controllers to emergency situations which are occurring on or immediately adjacent to the tracks.

Huw Merriman: The Department looks to the Office of Rail and Road (ORR), as the independent safety regulator for Britain’s railways, to determine the adequacy of systems to alert train drivers and controllers of emergency situations occurring on, or immediately adjacent to the tracks.

Charging Points: Haringey

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many electric vehicle chargepoints there are in (a) Haringey and (b) Hornsey and Wood Green constituency.

Jesse Norman: This data represents those charging points paid for under government schemes, or recorded on Zapmaps, and likely underestimates the total amount of chargers.In all areas, most users charge at home, and the complete number of home chargers isn’t recorded.  i.) Public charging devicesii.) Charging devices funded by the Domestic Recharge Schemeiii.) Charging devices funded by the Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme iv.) Charging sockets funded by the Workplace Charging Scheme(a) Haringey local authority1032450235(b) Hornsey And Wood Green constituency602047924

Motorways: Charging Points

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the number of electric charging points on the motorway network.

Jesse Norman: Around 96% of motorway service areas in England have charging available. There are more than 450 open-access (can be used with any electric vehicle) rapid and ultra-rapid chargepoints at motorway service areas across England.

Railways: Fares

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on the number of fare types available across the railway network.

Huw Merriman: There are a range of fare types available to suit the varying needs of passengers. Most commonly used are Anytime, Off-Peak and Super Off-Peak tickets that allow passengers to take any train in specified time periods, season tickets for commuters and Advance tickets that offer low-priced fares when booking ahead on a specific train.

Railway Stations: Tickets

Mrs Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking with train operating companies to ensure that planned ticket office closures do not disproportionally affect (a) disabled and (b) elderly passengers.

Huw Merriman: When proposing major changes to ticket office opening hours, including closures, train operators were required to take into account the adequacy of the proposed alternatives in relation to the needs of all passengers including those who are disabled, vulnerable or have protected characteristics; and to include this in the notice of the proposal sent to other operators and passenger groups. When consulting, operators should have also clearly considered other equality-related needs. Following the end of the consultation period the independent passenger bodies (Transport Focus and London TravelWatch) are engaging with train operators on the basis of the consultation responses they have received and the criteria they have set out. We expect train operators to work collaboratively with passenger bodies in the coming weeks, to listen to concerns raised, such as the impacts on vulnerable people, and to refine their proposals accordingly.

Department for Transport: Public Appointments

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many public appointments are sponsored by his Department.

Jesse Norman: There are 188 public appointments.

Railway Stations: Tickets

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to ensure any potential closure of ticket offices does not increase travel costs for people travelling outside TfL boundaries.

Huw Merriman: Together with the rail industry, we want to improve and modernise the experience for passengers by moving staff out from behind the ticket office screens to provide more help and advice in customer focused roles. The proposals should allow staff to move around the station to provide more personalised assistance in various ways, rather than being restricted to just selling tickets from a ticket office window, including so that passengers travelling outside TfL boundaries still get the best price for their journey. The rail industry is considering the current range of non-digital products and transactions to identify solutions. This work includes expanding digital ticketing options and making them even easier for passengers to use through upgrades to TVMs and the digitisation of more tickets.

Motor Vehicles: Production

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will commit to removing the proposals to ban the production of petrol and diesel vehicles by 2030.

Jesse Norman: The Government remains committed to ending the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030, with all new cars and vans being fully zero emission by 2035. The UK’s position at the forefront of the global transition to zero emission vehicles ensures private sector investment into EV infrastructure and ChargeUK have projected £6 billion of new private investment in charging infrastructure by 2030.

Transport: Strikes

Matt Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to tackle strike action which delays commuters.

Huw Merriman: Since coming into office, the Secretary of State and I have positively changed the tone and facilitated discussions to bring an end to the industrial action. Negotiations are between industry and the trade unions. RMT and ASLEF decided not to allow their members to have a say on the fair and reasonable offers that were proposed by industry. Instead, they rejected these outright and have pressed on with industrial action that impacts their members and the public. This industrial action will not avoid the need for essential workforce reform. Together with industry we are keen to press ahead with critical reforms so that we achieve a financially and operationally sustainable rail network that provides a service that passengers deserve.

Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to support the transition to zero emission vehicles.

Jesse Norman: The Net Zero Strategy, published in 2021, confirmed the Government's intention to introduce a zero emission vehicle mandate, setting targets for a percentage of manufacturers' new car and van sales to be zero emission each year from 2024. This will discharge commitments to phase out the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2030.In addition, the Government’s EV infrastructure strategy sets out its vision and commitments to accelerate the rollout of an electric vehicle charging network and get chargepoints into the ground quicker.

Electric Vehicles: Charging Points

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information the Government holds on the number of electric vehicle charging points at each motorway service station in England.

Jesse Norman: Around 96% of motorway service areas in England have charging available. There are currently more than 450 open-access (can be used with any electric vehicle) rapid (50kW) and ultra-rapid (150kW+) chargepoints at motorway service areas across England.

Railway Stations: West Yorkshire

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of closing train station ticket offices in (a) Leeds, (b) Burley Park and (c) Horsforth rail stations on the (i) safety and (ii) accessibility of passenger rail travel in the North West.

Huw Merriman: We are now in a period where the independent passenger bodies (Transport Focus and London TravelWatch) are engaging with train operators on the basis of the consultation responses they have received and the criteria they have set out. We expect train operators to work collaboratively with the passenger bodies in the coming weeks, to listen to the concerns raised and to refine their proposals accordingly. When proposing major changes to ticket office opening hours, including closures, operators were required to take into account the adequacy of the proposed alternatives in relation to the needs of all passengers; and to include this in the notice of the proposal sent to other operators and passenger groups. All operators prepared Equality Impact Assessments and published these on their websites. Together with industry, we want to improve and modernise the passenger experience by moving staff out from ticket offices to provide more help and advice in customer focused roles. No currently staffed station will be unstaffed as a result of industry changes, and train operators will ensure staff are well located to meet passenger needs in future.

Railway Stations: Tickets

Sir Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an assessment with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of proposed closures of station ticket offices in (a) Great Yarmouth and (b) other coastal towns on the tourism sector in those areas.

Huw Merriman: Train operators are responsible for deciding how to ensure sufficient access to ticketing services at their stations, including at those in coastal towns or other popular tourist areas. Train operators have chosen to do this in different ways, or example, some operators have proposed to retain ticket offices at the largest stations, whereas others have proposed to provide new mobile equipment to station staff so that they can sell tickets as required. Together with industry, we want to improve and modernise the passenger experience by moving staff out from ticket offices to provide more help and advice in customer focused roles. No currently staffed station will be unstaffed as a result of industry changes, and train operators will ensure staff are well located to meet passenger needs in future.

Department for Transport: Public Inquiries

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the average time taken to respond to public inquiries by his Department was in each of the last five years; and whether he plans to introduce measures to improve this.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Transport has not led the formal Government response to any of the statutory public inquiries published in the last 5 years under the Inquiries Act 2005.

Department for Transport: Correspondence

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what data their Department holds on the average response time to enquiries by Members; and what assessment they have made of the adequacy of that response time.

Jesse Norman: Since the start of the 2022/23 Parliamentary Year to September 2023 the Department has answered 87% of correspondence from Members within the cross government target of 20 working days. This works out about 12.4 days per letter on average.

Department for Transport: Correspondence

Julian Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps they are taking to reduce backlogs of Member correspondence in their office.

Jesse Norman: The Department takes a number of measures to maintain good performance and improve further. These include: Regular monitoring and reporting on open letters, automatic reminders and follow ups sent to drafters, Monthly meetings with Correspondence Champions to discuss performance and identify issues and potential solutions.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

Sudan: Social Media

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether he is taking steps to help shut down social media activity in the UK that incites further violence in Sudan.

Paul Scully: The UK strongly condemns the attacks on civilians across Sudan and my Hon. Friend, the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, has previously shared details of the UK’s efforts, to stop the violence, ensure that civilians are protected, and bring about safe and unfettered humanitarian access. The government works closely with the major social media platforms and encourages them to consistently apply their policies, including policies on content that incites violence. Under the new transparency, accountability and freedom of expression duties in the Online Safety Bill, the largest platforms (category 1 services) will be required to have transparent and consistently enforced terms of service.

Emergency Calls: Rural Areas

Anthony Mangnall: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that people in rural areas are able to contact emergency services in instances when (a) power and (b) mobile masts are not working and (c) Voice over Internet Protocol has replaced landlines.

Sir John Whittingdale: We recognise the importance of 999 and contacting emergency services as an essential part of public safety and particularly so in rural areas. Therefore, the Government works in partnership with operators, Ofcom and the Emergency Authorities to strengthen the resilience of the Public Emergency Call Service, to ensure it meets the needs of the UK public. DSIT works closely with the telecommunications industry and Ofcom to ensure the sector remains resilient to all risks that may affect services, including technological transformation. The Department also works together with the telecoms industry through the Electronic Communications Resilience & Response Group to agree methods to strengthen resilience and establish best practice across the sector. The analogue landline network, also called the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), is a privately-owned network. The ongoing work to upgrade it to digital voice services is an industry-led process. The decision to upgrade the PSTN was taken as the technology it relies upon is now outdated and prone to failure, with companies finding it increasingly difficult to source the spare parts needed for repairs. The upgrade process is currently ongoing and all consumers will be migrated to digital voice services by 2025. The Government also recognises the importance of both fixed (landlines) and the mobile telephone network in the UK. In particular in rural and isolated areas, for the elderly and other vulnerable users and customers of technology enabled care services. We expect industry to ensure that all consumers, including the most vulnerable, are protected and prepared for the upgrade of the PSTN. DSIT receives regular updates from telecoms providers about the progress of their migration and any emerging challenges they face Ofcom is responsible for the monitoring and enforcement of any regulatory obligations as the providers themselves are responsible. Communication Providers are required by obligations set out in the General Conditions of Entitlement, made under the Communications Act 2003, to ensure the continuity of access to the Public Emergency Call Service, via the telephone numbers 999 and 112. Compliance with these obligations is monitored and enforced by Ofcom In 2018, Ofcom published guidance on the measures telecoms companies should take to ensure compliance with this General Condition in light of the industry’s decision to retire the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) and replace it with Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology. The guidance states that in the event of a power outage at least one solution must be available for consumers, providing access for a minimum of one hour. The solution should be suitable for customers’ needs and should be offered free of charge to those who are at risk as they are dependent on their landline, because for example, they have disability or accessibility requirements that mean they are more reliant on their landline and/or they do not have an alternative method of calling emergency organisations (including those who own a mobile but have limited or no mobile signal (on any network). These are minimum standards, and in practice many providers are offering solutions which exceed them.

Treasury

Financial Services: Vetting

Adam Holloway: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that (a) banks and (b) other financial institutions cannot refuse to provide financial services on the basis of a person's status as a politically exposed person.

Adam Holloway: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Financial Conduct Authority‘s forthcoming review into financial institutions’ adherence to the current guidance on Politically Exposed Persons will address the withdrawal of banking services to individuals due to lawfully held political, philosophical or religious beliefs.

Adam Holloway: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the guidance by the Financial Conduct Authority on politically exposed persons, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of that guidance on financial institutions' (a) authority to withdraw services and (b) the freedom of expression of politically exposed persons.

Andrew Griffith: The Government’s position is clear that financial institutions must not deny services to customers who are Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) solely on the basis of their PEP status, nor on the basis of their political beliefs. The Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 commits the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to conduct a review into financial institutions’ adherence to their guidance on PEPs, and the appropriateness of that guidance, within twelve months of Royal Assent. This review will assess the compliance of FCA-regulated firms with their legal and regulatory obligations regarding the risk management and treatment of PEPs, as well as their relatives and known close associates, and the FCA will take action where it identifies serious failures. The FCA has contacted domestic PEPs seeking their input regarding their own treatment by financial institutions, and will publish the terms of reference for its review in September. The Government has also taken action through the Financial Services and Markets Act to commit the Treasury to amend the Money Laundering Regulations to distinguish explicitly between domestic and non-domestic PEPs in law. This amendment will make clear that, in the absence of other high-risk factors, domestic PEPs must be treated as lower risk than non-domestic PEPs and have a lesser degree of enhanced due diligence applied to them. Separately, there are existing regulations - specifically Regulation 18 of the Payment Accounts Regulations 2015 – which already require banks not to discriminate against any UK consumers based on their political opinions when accessing a payment account. The Chancellor has written to the FCA to request an urgent review into the matter of ‘de-banking’ more broadly. The FCA has agreed to undertake this review, and to share the evidence and findings with the Treasury.